Balance
by 8 Acres East
Summary: Here it is, the power of a pure wish, making possible impossibilities. Here you are, my dearest wish, lit by the star in my heart. "I was told once that watching over someone from afar is a kind of love. I didn't understand completely then, but I see it now." Sailor Mini Moon and her scouts, 7 years after Galaxia, face a new threat as darkness tries to claim the wishes of Earth.
1. Chapter 1

**Balance**

**Chapter 1**

* * *

_A beautiful wish came to fruition. I've watched its light reach to the far ends of this solar system._

_The wishing well cannot resist such power._

_Well, then, what are we waiting for?_

_It is time to make this wish ours._

* * *

"Darien, wake up. Wake. Up!"

The King of Earth blinked open blue eyes, noting first the barest hints of sunrise that touched the bedroom window. Noting next the alert face of his wife, who had awoken before him—

"How…wha…why are you up so early, Buns?" His eyes narrowed. "Is it Rini? She's not yet back from their mission—"

Just then, the Queen's face softened into one of the most beautiful smiles the King had ever seen. In the long history of Prince and Princess, Moon and Mask, Serena and Darien, King and Queen, Darien held up five smiles as being utterly unreal, and they were under very specific circumstances. This one was about to nudge into Top Three, pending next words. He fingered a strand of silk blonde hair and sat up. "What's happening?"

"I have something wonderful to tell you."

* * *

Not many things are scary after you've already died once or twice.

Traveling through time and space ripped muscle from the bone. Rini at times had thought that one could die of nausea, throwing up life and leaving it somewhere in the 1960's while you hurtled towards the past. Later, selling her soul and encasing her body in a dark shell was a little bit like the end of life, but she had been restored from her status as Wicked Lady—restored by the death of a friend. At another time it had felt like death to watch Hotaru suffer, to watch Papa suffer as Mama once again rammed herself into the heart of danger. In those days Sailor Moon kept giving away her life again and again, as though it were part of the routine, like brushing teeth.

Then Nephrenia slurped everyone's souls out, drinking up their dreams. But Rini didn't have too many strong memories of whatever nightmare she had been launched into before Mama and Papa kissed the world back to normal. Those memories had been overpowered by the thrill of affirmation—her own crystal, her own adventure, her own experience with the restorative power of a kiss. Death lost its place in Rini's line-up of nightmares when Helios opened his eyes.

So she had thought. Rini still remembered with trembling how it felt, in Galaxy Cauldron, when her existence ceased. Brain-washed Tuxedo Mask fell backwards into the chaos below. Her thoughts as he fell: _This is about the time that Sailor Moon will save us_. But then her limbs began to disappear, and a real panic—the fear that lodged in the pit of her stomach, bringing her onto her knees—set in, took hold, and didn't let go. Not like with the times before. It gripped, tighter and tighter. Sailor Moon's cry had never sounded so far away.

"Sailor Moon…Mama…"_ I will always be a little girl. In my last moments, I cried for mommy._

Rini did not enjoy remembering these "last" thoughts. It was not her life that flashed before her eyes, but the realization that her dream of being a lady, a bride, a true scout, would go unfulfilled. To cease felt bitter, and cold. The taste of iron in her mouth.

Then, after those thoughts, a voice—

_Princess Lady Serenity._ A tickle on her cheek, and Rini's eyes had opened once more, and all she saw was a hazy, creamy white. She tried to move, but her body did not respond. An ache in her back—and then Rini saw that she possessed wings. Feathers shifted, and Rini's vision cleared.

A silhouette walked towards her through a lavender light, through a soft orange haze like the colors of a setting sun. Somehow, Rini had known it was not an enemy. Comfort gave her strength to move.

Rini finally stood, and stretched her arms, and stretched the wings. "Are Mama and Papa here? Where are my scouts? What's happened to my friends?" _Who am I even speaking to? Does it even matter? _Her heart began to ache.

"Princess Lady Serenity." The voice had been familiar. A scout, with dusky purple hair, heart-shaped buns. Though the body was grown, Rini had known instantly that she was standing with—

"Chibi Chibi," she breathed. "Why aren't you with Sailor Moon?" _Have you died as well?_

"I am Sailor Cosmos," the scout had replied. "I am… a coward. As we speak, Sailor Moon fights Galaxia with every ounce of bravery I abandoned." She turned, and smiled at Rini. "But I wish to fix that here and now." Rini would never piece together the mysteries, the infinity contained within her smile. The secret at the corners of her lips.

Rini tugged at the edge of her soft white dress. "How?" The ache in her heart, dull and small, was growing with every word she spoke. Throbbing despair. "How can you take back our death?" She had choked on the words.

Sailor Cosmos approached Rini, regarding her gently. Rini, staring at the wings on the shoes of Sailor Cosmos, looked up into her navy eyes when she felt a gloved hand lift her chin. "Sailor Moon will accomplish this," Cosmos said. "You will be restored to the 30th Century. And your team, as well."

"Yet I just watched my Papa die!" Rini replied shortly. Cosmos softened her gaze. Rini backed down, suddenly embarrassed. "I apologize, Sailor Cosmos. I know…I know that Sailor Moon can win. I do."

The scout appeared not to hear. A single star twinkled above them. "My time is short," Cosmos murmured, eyes on the star. "I must return to the Cauldron soon, and play my role." She stepped away from Rini and held up her staff. Rini felt a tickle on her skin, all over her arms, legs, at the tip of her nose. It was the static of Cosmos gathering power, though the source of this warmth was unfamiliar. Then a violent wind had erupted—and suddenly the simple shift that Rini was wearing became her familiar royal gown.

"Princess Lady Serenity." Sailor Cosmos' voice had been strong, regal. "Yours is a beautiful inheritance. A princess, yet a soldier. Protected by moonlight and the lights of this universe. Guarded by dreamlight from the heart of this planet. The blood of the moon and the blood of the earth run together in your veins. The power of light and dark work together in your heart. Enemies became your protectors. You are the embodiment of innocence, yet possess the wisdom of a millennium." The starburst on Sailor Cosmos' forehead glowed and shot two beams of light, one into a crescent moon on Rini's forehead, the other into her heart. Rini winced, faltering for a moment, then stood straight once more, welcoming the gentle pressure of this power.

The Pink Moon Crystal materialized in front of her heart, and the beam of light was split by the angles of the jewel. Threads of light wove around Rini's body, all stemming from the Crystal, connected to Sailor Cosmos' power.

"Contrasts dwell peacefully within your heart. Sailor Mini Moon, I grant you new powers as the Scout of Symmetry. The power to join paths. The power to harmonize. No longer will you live and fight in a state of quiescence."

Sailor Mini Moon's hand began to feel hot. She looked down and saw a new scepter taking form in her grasp. An intricate circle, curving within itself to form a sort of yin and yang, with designs of the moon within the sun, of a rose and its thorns. Now her crystal rested in the center of this design. She looked up at Sailor Cosmos again, as the light faded. She was shocked to see a thin web of black traveling down the length of the ruby staff—was it darkness? Her eyes shot up to Sailor Cosmos.

"I don't quite understand yet. Harmonies? Qui—quintessence?" Her eyes grew tense, focused. Mama called it her "Papa Face", an inheritance of his stoic ways. "Why is there a darkness in this weapon?"

"Quiescence. A state of dormancy." Cosmos placed a cool hand on Rini's bare shoulder. "You have grown, yet your body has not yet caught up. Balance will now be restored. You are to become now Sailor Lady Moon." She traced a finger along the dark veins that traveled down Rini's new weapon. "And darkness will not fear you, just as you have not been afraid. Not all that is dark is the enemy, Rini. The shadow is a measure of the sun."

There was a rumble in the distance. Cosmos' eyes narrowed. Then, to the young Princess' shock, Cosmos knelt down, placing a hand over her heart. "Princess Lady Serenity. Sailor Lady Moon. You are not, and have never truly been, a little girl. My gift to you—it is an honor to give it." Then, Cosmos lifted from the ground, moving rapidly towards the star, and faded away.

"W-wait! I still have questions—" Rini reached her hand out to the star above. Her face crumpled, confused. "I wish I didn't need more power. That means there will be more fights." She locked her grasp around the staff, running a finger along its side. It was at least a foot taller than she was. Would she seriously grow into it, now that Sailor Cosmos had spoken over her? She looked out at the bareness of her surroundings and tried to consider what would lie beyond. Rini had longed for Setsuna in that moment, reminded of the solitary guardian.

"Shadows and light…" she murmured.

Suddenly, the staff faded, her gown faded back into the white shift from earlier, and all turned to a crisp, pure light.

Rini floated up, as though through water, but instead of moisture, she felt the dust of stars. It stuck to her like sand at the beach. She burst out from a wind and saw in an instant the familiar golden hair, the familiar bony shoulders of her mother. In the distance, Darien stood with the rest of the sailor team. All safe, all whole. Rini had begun to cry. She had extended her hands and touched her mother's cheek before it went out of reach.

"Bunny." _Mama. Find me in the 30__th__ Century. _

She had floated through time for the better part of a day and arrived at the door to the Crystal Palace, just in time for dinner. When Rini awoke that next morning in the future, she was four inches taller.

And death? Death was not her concern anymore. She knew now of her own invincibility, and it gave her strength.

And she would continue to learn more of her powers in the seven years that followed. She had already defeated a few great enemies.

So basically, the current predicament wasn't exactly scary.

Here, seven years beyond Galaxia, Rini crouched, Sailor Lady Moon, behind the crumbled remains of an asteroid boulder. The four scouts were scattered in hiding across the terrain, waiting for Pallas' evaluation of the enemy.

Static over the communicator on her wrist, then the soft voice of Sailor Pallas: "Like Lemures, but different. Can't place my finger on it. Bodyless, a gaseous darkness. They lunge quickly. Weak point, the eyes."

Sailor Juno: "On Ceres' signal, we move."

Rini gripped the Pink Moon Scepter firmly, waiting for the opportunity to strike out against the enemy.

"Now!" Ceres' cue. Rini stood, whirling around to face her foe. Vesta had already blasted through part of the line-up.

"In the name of the Moon and for the heart of the Earth, we fight!" she yelled, and fearlessly propelled herself into the fray.

Just another day in the life.

* * *

_From the scrolls of Elysion: a recording of what has passed, a written account of all visions. From the pen of Daphne, a (particularly young and beautiful) Maenard of the Order of Elysion, an Elysion Temple scribe._

_The restoration of Elysion, following the events that transpired during the invasion of the gross, evil Galaxia (detailed account found in Scrolls 8471 through 8480) continues. Helios this day has released the final crystal casings around the distant structure of the East Lake Chapel, an area of Elysion that has awaited its restoration for quite some time, due to the detailing in the façade of the structure. The healing crystal has removed all traces of darkness and death that lingered in the aftermath of our Prince's sudden demise at the hands of that evil bitch Galaxia._

Daphne sighed and pulled out a new parchment. Persephone was really much better at this, the neutral, profanity-free tone that was required in the creation of a historical text.

_From the scrolls of Elysion: a recording of what has passed, a written account of all visions…_

If Crystal Tokyo could create a digital library, why couldn't Elysian get even a typewriter?

And really (Daphne's pen strokes became sharper, shorter) what was the problem in writing down feelings about facts, in addition to fact itself? Galaxia's evil was unbiased fact, despite Persephone's report that at the last minute, she had revealed some innocence. Elysion made its peace, but Daphne held fast to her grudges. What was the passage of seven years in Elysion but a day? Helios, thousands of years old. Herself, turning "1999" for the past hundred years. Persephone, gracefully acknowledging the passage of three millenia. Daphne could hold on to offense for an eon if it was serious.

Once Elysion had reappeared with Galaxia's death, it was difficult to compile the record scrolls that would account for what transpired during the King's…"nap". Persephone had diligently gathered information, in correspondence with King Endymion, Sailor Pluto, the Queen, and a collection of distant stars who had felt the effects of such a battle. That took the better part of five years, but their documentation was fully completed.

Daphne copied down for the second time, _The healing crystal has removed all traces of darkness and death…_

How she remembered the shock of that day, the death and the reappearance. No scroll would fully document those feelings.

_…__the Prince's sudden demise at the hands of Galaxia._

It had been so quick—Helios, one minute kneeling before the altar that had been granting pieces of Earth's story via priestly visions (like a fairy tale, Daphne thought at times—like magic mirror, on the wall, who's out fighting today? Except not a mirror but an altar, lit with such pure blue fire). Helios had been waiting for a vision, as he did every twilight. Then his eyes snapped open, and his arms were stretched, and he gasped, "The King…" before disappearing completely, and the temple had started crumbling, and all Daphne could recall from that point on was darkness, before she woke up again.

They could have been gone for years, eons, and not known the difference. To her it had felt like one second, moving from such darkness back to living. She awoke to a desolate wasteland. It was still being repaired even now.

Daphne sipped from a glass on the table beside her, welcoming the velvet sensation that followed the bitter taste of the drink. Her mind was on the past, but her hand recorded the present day.

_Virgil has been helping Helios with the ongoing Chapel restoration, and likes to assist me in the rose garden too. He grows taller each day. _

She had awakened to a wasteland, and saw Helios kneeling in the remains of the main sanctuary before Sailor Cosmos. Black roses, crumbled pillars. Mist over the lake. Persephone rising, hair disheveled, awe-struck, eyes on Sailor Cosmos.

And what had she said, that mysterious scout?

"The Golden Kingdom is restored by Sailor Moon's sacrifice. King Endymion lives, Crystal Tokyo will come to pass. High Priest Helios, I grant you the healing powers to rebuild Elysion. Its full glory is imminent. And I give you the shielding powers of dreamlight, born of Sailor Moon's sacrifice. Use it well. The Lord of Elysion approaches."

Then Sailor Cosmos placed a bundle in the priest's arms that grew up to be Virgil.

And Helios—sweet, love-struck Helios (Daphne warmed at the thought)—all the questions he could possibly ask, and he had one: "What of Small Lady?"

Then Persephone, with a tight hug, had shaken Daphne from her eavesdropping, and Daphne had been too respectful of the High Priest to ask later on what the answer had been, and now seven years later, she wrote,

_Helios has received no new revelations, and has not recently been called away by the Princess Lady Serenity. A pervasive peace has settled into Elysion, and we take comfort in the routine._

Yet Daphne noted the restlessness in their leader, and the restlessness in herself. A taste of the outside world, like the taste of wine, could linger long. Elysion was not isolated from communication, but it was not entirely connected, either. Its sanctity, its separation, was the byproduct of its holiness. But the two worlds grew closer, with every battle Sailor Lady Moon fought. Her most desperate struggles had drawn Helios to Earth once or twice—he would disappear in a shimmer, as instantly and directly as the dry soil drinks in water. And whenever Helios returned from those fights, bruised and weary as he was, Daphne saw a fresh glint in his eye, a small change in his posture. He came alive telling stories of these battles to Virgil.

_By the light of Elysion,_

_Daphne al-Maenard_

The shrine maiden stood and filed the day's scroll, pressing her forehead against the cool wooden shelves before leaving the library. Her limbs felt stretched, her head like a balloon that was only tethered to her body by a thin, unraveling string. Perhaps the drink. Perhaps the foreboding sense that "pervasive peace" would soon be gone.

Persephone was waiting at the door, back straight. Virgil was beside her, hand curled in a fold of the Maenard's gown. Someone needed to get rid of the thumb-sucking habit, soon. And he needed a haircut too. Daphne ran her tongue over her teeth, willing away any stain from the wine. She mussed up Virgil's brown hair, eliciting a smile from the boy.

"Daphne," Persephone breathed, "Helios has a vision. Come, you must see!"

* * *

Sailor Ceres watched as these creatures, so similar to Lemures, gathered together, with movements almost like the bees in her garden—she could not put a pattern to their wanderings, but still knew it was purposeful.

Their appearance…blobs, altogether dark, yet they contained unsteady amounts of all colors. Red eyes. Shaped like Lemures, moved like Lemures, but something was off in the manner they clumped. Lemures had been territorial, solitary, despite their being summoned in groups. Yet when Pluto had sent them through space to this asteroid, they had trekked across the asteroid to find these creatures, huddled like cattle, with no apparent leader.

But, as their princess had said, darkness is darkness, and so they spread out and prepared for battle.

The tufts of her two pink ponytails were mangy and matted from the soot. She and Pallas knelt together behind a rock formation that blocked her view of where Lady Moon hid, but allowed her to see Vesta to her right and Juno to her left—and Vesta could see Rini. With Pallas gathering research, all Ceres could do at this point was observe and wait. _Every good leader delegates, right, V-Babe?_

Pallas held a device similar in appearance to a phone, and was scrolling through a collection of data that Ceres would not even try to understand. "Hurry it up, Pal," she murmured, watching as the 'Lemures' grew braver, inching closer to the rock where Vesta hid.

"Got it," her companion said. She flipped up the face of her watch and whispered into it, so that Ceres heard her voice in static radio and also in person beside her. "…weak point, the eyes."

No point waiting any longer. Once you knew the weakness, you knew the win.

"Now!"

Sailor Ceres leapt to the top of the rock and looked to Vesta first, for she was closest to the enemy. Sailor Vesta had already shot fire through a line-up, which could be attributed to having the fastest reflexes and the hottest temper of the scouts. Ceres turned her attention to Sailor Lady Moon, who had given the spiel (a quick sentence—Rini hated to drone on in a battle speech, every bit as much as her mother had loved it) and now held a look on her face that was impassive, almost bored, or distracted—unalarmed. Ceres knew this was Rini's way of concentrating. If she appeared at ease, the battle would be easy. Rini, quite the brilliant student, often applied tricks discovered in their studies, and this idea of posturing had been reaped from one of Sailor Pluto's psychology lessons.

"Pink Ladies Freezing Kiss!"

"Amazoness Jungle Arrow!"

"Sailor Crystal Arrow!"

They attacked together when they could, but each moved on their own around the battlefield. Like a ballet—each of them moving in symphony with one another. Vesta's hearthfire and Juno's binding whip both guarded Pallas' acrobatic dodgings, which were done not to fight, but in effort to gather more data. For that was the King's primary aim in this mission: information.

Suddenly Ceres felt a sharp tug in her heart, like an invisible fishing hook had been cast into her chest then yanked. She whirled around to face the approaching blob, clutching the star brooch on her gray bow. "What is it that you do?" she muttered, gasping at the sharp pain. "How is it you attack?" She steadied her hand, prepared to cast some 'flower power' (Juno's words, not hers) at the creature, and waited for its next move.

A voice in her mind—_Give me your wish. Give me your wish to be perfect. The Wishing Well demands it. _

And Ceres could have sworn her hands began to dissipate—

_It's true I want to be so beautiful and mature—_

_Become one of us—_

Sharp tugs at her heart, but it was not quite at her whole heart—

_Become a Wizen—_

"Pink Crystal Moon Power!"

And her Princess had protected her, despite it being Ceres' role to protect the Princess. The pain left, and the blob disintegrated in a flash of hot pink. Ceres fell to one knee, causing Pallas to run towards her, but before her sister could help her up, Ceres had stood once more. The lead scout brushed dust off of her skirt. "I'm fine. Thank you, Rini." She nodded to Sailor Lady Moon, who had also approached with concern. _Thank you._ Words insufficient for the life saving that happened on a bi-weekly basis in their profession.

Ceres gazed at the bare land of the asteroid. Whose home had been destroyed this time? What was the mission of the dark creatures?

It seemed that the rest they had been granted in the aftermath of Blue Moon's defeat was coming to its end.

Then Rini, ever businesslike, declared, "That was the last one. Let's go."

Ceres turned to face her friend. Their princess lowered her chin, ruby eyes glinting, and held up a purple skeleton key. In a flash of light, the team vanished.

* * *

"Lady Moon!"

Rini smiled warmly, falling into Sailor Pluto's welcome hug. "We're alright," she murmured, suddenly aware of the rips in her boots and the droop in her sleeves. She backed away, straightening her posture. If she remembered to stand tall these days, she had half an inch on the time guardian. And it had only taken 927 years. She handed Pluto the teleport key, saying again, "We're alright."

They had done it on their own this time. Rini looked out into the expanse, wondering what would have happened, if she had evoked a desperate _Twinkle Yell_… the response had been different each time, so far. The fire, the wings, his voice, his arms, shields, feathers, light. Once upon a time she had expected nothing. Nowadays, she didn't know what would unfold when she chose to wield Elysian power.

Sailor Ceres' voice.

"Sailor Lady Moon protects us well. You would be proud, Setsuna, at the way she maintains such calm dignity."

"I am proud, every day." Rini's cheeks burned and she twirled a pink curl around her finger.

Juno's brow furrowed. "Another instance of Lemures. Nephrenia may yet linger in some corner of the universe."

"It's nothing we couldn't handle. They're gone." Sailor Vesta tossed her hair…about as well as it could be tossed in its covered ponytail. Rini often wondered if her scout's hairstyles were at all comfortable.

Sailor Pallas crossed her arms. "These Lemures are not the same. I remember…" she extended her hand in a soft fist. "I remember how it felt to interact with them, to understand the way they consumed dreams. This was different. They are incomplete."

"They tried to draw something from my heart," Sailor Juno added. "But not a dream. Did you notice, Rini?"

Rini shook her head, puzzled. "I felt nothing." She sheepishly rubbed her arm, then winced at the bruise she had awakened. "I was distracted," she admitted. "I was…thinking about the past."

"Can't have a distracted fighter, you know," Juno, hands on hips.

"I still saved Ceres!" Rini retorted, motioning to the scout. "I've saved your ass a few times too!"

"Princess Lady Serenity!"

"Well, I take back my that 'calm dignity' bit from before."

Juno laughed, punching Rini playfully on the shoulder.

"Sorry Sailor Ceres, Pluto. I bring out her worst!"

"Guysss!" Rini whined.

Pluto smiled, leaning her head against her staff. "Calm, cool, and collected, but only on the battlefield. That's our Rini. Go on in—I know that everyone wants to see you."

Sailor Lady Moon straightened her shoulders and approached the door. She felt the thrill of certainty in her royal status every time a door opened before her. The prodding and bullying of her childhood was long gone, but Rini could still remember how it felt, to be small and powerless and doubtful. But this door, so long ago, had been her validation.

So once again the Silver Millenium opened before them. Rini salivated at the thought of Lita's cooking.

"Oh!" She turned back to her friend. "Pluto!" she called. "Any word from Sailor Saturn yet?" Hotaru had been sent to her castle by orders from Luna, who was tracking these instances of darkness on distant asteroids. Hotaru was to set up defenses with Haruka and Michiru, and update the communication links. She was to be gone only a short time.

Pluto shook her head. "Not yet, Lady, but she should be returning any day now!"

Rini nodded, grinning. "I can't wait!" Then she turned and ran, catching up to the other scouts.

* * *

Five silhouettes faded against the backdrop of Crystal Tokyo. Sailor Pluto's smile faded with them, and she gazed out into the endless abyss. Gateways to anywhere in the universe, across time and across space. She was no longer bound by taboo to the door, being reborn with new powers and responsibilities, but Pluto preferred to be the guardian. Her specific skills made her best for the job, and a constant stream of visitors made it bearable.

The formless void continued in its soporific music, somewhat akin to ocean waves against the shore. Small Lady had grown so fast, in power, in stature, in self-assurance. It shocked her each time they waltzed through that door, these new Sailor Scouts.

"What does our future hold?" she murmured, to the streams of time. "Hotaru, my daughter, where have you gone? Why can't I hear you call?"

A storm approached.

* * *

From the asteroid, the stars had been brighter, more numerous, and beautifully untouched. From Earth, stars deferred to the light of the moon instead. Rini thought of Papa's trick—_to see more stars, block out sources of light_—and raised a slender hand to cover the moon, improving her stargazing.

Princess Lady Serenity once again, Rini was out of costume and in the gown of a princess, leaning against the railing of a palace balcony. Wind ruffled her sleeves. The finer strands of her thick pink hair were tickling her check. But it was a warm night, and Rini was reluctant to return inside.

Through the open door, she heard muted party noises: Juno's cackling laughter, the crack of a pool cue. The clinking of glasses, Mina's roaring voice, telling another Sailor V story.

Footsteps on stone. Pallas appeared by her side, almost invisible against the night sky, in her navy dress. "Rini," she began, "Will you play a song? Ami's requesting it, and so am I."

Rini smiled up at the stars. They were beautiful, but she loved her music. "Of course," she replied.

The two re-entered the palace together, and the still of night transformed into a symphony of conversation. The King and Queen, seated in a corner together, were locked in discussion with Luna and Artemis. The elder scouts, now known more as Princesses and representatives of their planets, were gathered around the billiard table, where Vesta and Juno were completing the final rounds of their game. Ceres sat in another corner by the piano, quietly sipping a drink and speaking with Diana.

Whiplash, moving from battle to such peace. Rini sat at the piano, exchanging a smile with her mother from across the room.

Pallas seated herself with Ceres and Diana, leaning towards the piano expectantly. "Raindrops," she demanded.

Rini nodded, shifting herself on the bench. She spread her fingers (large hands, another bullying point in elementary school, but look at them now, what they could do with these keys) and began—softly, deliberately, with precision. The Chopin piece was one of her favorites, of all that Haruka had coached her through. But it always left her feeling a bit sad, missing Haruka—so Rini, now fully absorbed in a place where the room had disappeared (Michiru had always talked about becoming 'submerged' by the music), followed it up with an arabesque. The sheet music had been a gift from Taiki, long ago. Rini smiled at the memory.

The crescendos, the speed of her fingers, the weaving melody. Leftover tensions of battle were fading.

_I wish…_

_I wish to simply exist here, without war…_

A piercing pain in her heart—

_Give me your wish—_

Rini's eyes shot open, and the song ceased.

The Princess of Mercury turned. "Do keep playing, Rini, Debussy is my favorite!"

Juno, "Who's Devsay?"

Rini's hands shook, and she tried to hide them from Pallas in the folds of her gown, but to no avail. "Lady, is everything alright?" Pal's voice was low, and though she spoke to Rini, she was drawing Ceres' attention as well.

"I felt…" Rini resumed her song, bringing it to a shaky finish. She could feel Diana's eyes on her. "I can't explain," she finished lamely, eyes apologetic to the three of them.

Rini, ignoring the prickling sensation that was weaving its way through her body, concentrated all effort into coolly lowering the lid of the piano, into calmly standing and dusting off her gown. She patted her two hair buns then gave Pallas a grin. "Play your own work, Pallas, you know I love the things you've written." She motioned to the bench. Pallas, raising an eyebrow, but simply sat and began to play—her style more chaotic, fervent, but equal in talent to Rini's own. Pallas' playing held the lingering influence of Taiki's compositions.

_Phew._ Rini turned and walked straight into a velvet chest. "Oops, sorry Papa!"

The King placed a hand on either shoulder, planting a quick peck on her forehead. "Hello, Small Lady. ('You will always be Small Lady to me', Papa had said once) Beautiful music." He stepped back and glanced back towards the Queen, who was gliding through the door to the balcony. "Your mother and I must speak with you in private."

Rini's eyes narrowed. "Another mission? Is Hotaru alright?"

The King placed a finger to his lips, and motioned with his head towards the balcony. The Queen, smiling softly at the night sky from the other side of the glass, was already waiting.

Once upon a time, Bunny had poured oil into a hot pan despite Rini's objections, and the flames jumped instantly (of course), almost burning Darien's apartment down. She had thrown water on it (wrong choice, Rini had said), frantically dialed 911, morphed into Sailor Moon, and was beating the flames with her tiara frisbee, all while Rini calmly threw handfuls of flour at the whole mess until the fire died. Darien lost a good kitchen curtain that day.

Rini smiled. How far away that Bunny appeared to be from this Queen, the smile of an angel, that she now faced.

"We have something wonderful to tell you," her mother began, eyeing the King. "It's very unexpected news...well, I guess, not entirely, I mean, it obviously could have happened at any time, trust me..." nervous giggles, flushed cheeks, throwing a look towards the King (Papa's head dropped into his hands in a look that Rini recognized as an average case of Darien Embarassment) and continuing, "but why it would be now, after all this time, with you grown..."

Or perhaps, Rini revised, Bunny was not so far away after all.

And suddenly Rini knew exactly what would be said next, should have known it earlier, felt her pulse quicken as Papa raised his head again, putting an arm around Mama and planting a kiss on her temple, and Rini's mouth went dry and Papa said slowly,

"We are…having another child." Such disbelief in his tone, and yet such reverence.

Lita's strong cheer. Vesta had won the game of pool. Pallas' song ended. Mina waving a finger in Raye's face. Ami and Luna eyeing the window. Did they know?

The Queen, as she held the King's gaze, smiled softly through a misty sheen in her eyes. "It is a wish come true." Rini wasn't sure who Mama spoke to, but the words sent a shiver down her spine.

Serenity turned again to her daughter. "You will always be our Princess Lady," she said, enveloping Rini in a crushing hug. "And soon you will be joined by a little brother, if 'Dr. Mercury' is right."

Words eluded their Princess Lady.

* * *

_How strong, how pure, this impossible wish._

_It will make me a god!_

* * *

**8 Acres East**


	2. Chapter 2

**Balance**

**Chapter 2**

* * *

"And exactly when were you planning on telling me?" Rini found voice again, and found irritation in that voice. She crossed her arms, raising her chin at Papa. "Ami knew, hmm?"

"She had to run the tests to confirm my suspicions," The Queen answered. "I did not even tell Darien right away, Small Lady."

"We have only known about a day," the King added.

"How long until he's born?"

"About seven, eight months," Serenity replied. "I'll need a new dress for the Starlight Ambassador shindig, I guess." She giggled.

Rini was unconcerned about her mother's approaching fashion dilemmas. "Okay, so then what are you going to call him? Small Darien? Small Man? Prince Little Endymion? Or maybe Boy Bunny? Be prepared for him to take after you, 'cause we all know I ended up with Papa's brains."

"Little brat!" NeoQueen was gone. Bunny had replaced her. And the squabble grew.

The King buried his head in his hands, leaning wearily against the balcony railing. "Please. Not another one. I thought we were past this."

"So I'm a little brat but you still wanted to have another kid?"

"Children are a precious gift from God! That is, all children but you!"

"Small Lady, ignore your mother right now, you know we love you."

"And what if his hair is pink too? What are you going to do?"

"Don't be so silly, he will have the same dashing midnight locks as your father!"

"Can't guarantee that, Buns…"

"Don't be silly, Darien, it's a domino gene! Ami said so!"

"…Dominant."

"Yeah well you thought probably thought that I was going to have Darien's hair but look how that turned out!" Rini clutched her thick pink ponytails and waved them in her mother's face. "How about that?! Huh?!"

"Get those things out of my face! Darien!"

"Rini, lower your hair, please."

"Genetics mean nothing in this family! If they did, then who did my _bright red eyes_ come from?"

"Ugh! I'm _telling_ you, Topaz will not have those candy pigtails!"

Rini paused in her antagonizing. "…'Topaz'?"

The Queen, arms crossed, fixed her eyes on the moon. The King nodded at Rini's question. "Do you like the name?" he asked gently. "Topaz Endymion Shields. Prince Topaz."

Suddenly Rini had visions of herself, teaching a mini-Darien—teaching _Topaz_—how to climb trees, write his letters, she was showing a little brother the gate to time, passing down Luna P with the solemnity and joy that her mother had shown at the Passage of Powers…Rini smiled, blushing. "I love it," she replied. Then Rini hugged her mother tightly, kiss on the cheek. "And I love you, and I'm thrilled, I really am." She hugged Papa too. "I'll teach him everything I know."

"Hmph. She just flips a switch from brat to angel," the Queen grumbled.

"Not unlike someone else I know," the King sighed.

Rini walked towards the glass door to the palace, eager to share the news, but paused, turning. "What exactly," she asked, turning back to her parents, "will be the nature of his role? The Moon Dynasty is a long line of women, granted their powers by the moon. I don't think anyone else had a son, right? What is his inheritance, beyond a life in the shadow of a Sailor Scout? Will he be a scout as well? Will he have powers, or will he stay little like I did?"

Papa shifted, and Rini suddenly saw the other side of her words—what was the place of a man in this team of women? Perhaps Darien had wondered that himself, once upon the past. Rini felt her face grow hot when she saw the King's shadowed gaze.

"We don't really know what sort of powers he'll have," the Queen responded, "But we can tell you his role."

The King fingered his staff, and the Golden Crystal glinted in the moonlight. His eyes met Rini's. "Topaz will become the next ruler of Elysian."

_Elysian_. _The sparkling lakes and the trees painted with sunshine and the fresh breeze, the air that smelled of cut grass and roses. The blue stone temple, cool against her cheek when she woke there, and Helios had said, "You're okay?" … "I'm fine now, thanks to you. Have you been hurt?"… "No." Standing, stumbling, his arm warm and supportive, his eyes_

Rini's eyes widened, and her heart began to pound. "What about Helios? Has…Will something happen to Helios?"

_such a rich golden brown in the afternoon light, sun shining straight to the iris. "How did I get here, Helios?"… "You're dreaming. Walk with me awhile, before you wake." Warmth and light, twinkling bells and the smell of the forest, spicy dung scent of horses_

Papa shook his head. "No, he is well. I would know otherwise, and you probably would too. Helios remains the high priest. Elysian has been under the care of Helios for a long time, but only an actual heir can restore its former glory. Helios' job is distinct from what mine used to be and from what your brother's role will someday become."

_and the bright white Pegasus in his field, Virgil's grubby hands snatching at her tiara, Daphne's breathy laugh, Persephone's delicate smile, then alone by the lake, we spoke and we said _

Rini's shoulders relaxed. "So he is safe, then. He will continue as priest even when Topaz becomes old enough to rule." And who knew when that would be, Rini thought to herself, considering her own prolonged childhood.

The Queen nodded, eyes softening with understanding. "Don't worry, Rini. Helios will stay right where he has always been."

_"__Waiting and believing is one form love can take, right?"… "Yes, Rini." _

"Yes, Mama. I see." Where he had always been. The safest place for Helios was unreachable to Rini except through dreams. But no longer was it so easy for she and Helios to share a dream. That was the cost of her growth, the price paid for one dream fulfilled. And yet—in her darkest moments, in her hardest battles, his power always found its way to her.

"And, Rini, it will be possible to visit once its restoration is complete. Helios is still rebuilding the Crystal Chapel right now, where the prayer pillar stands, and it's a delicate structure. We do intend to restore the balance that existed before between his realm and ours. After all, strengthening the connection of Crystal Tokyo and Elysian would be of great benefit to Earth."

"Yes, Papa."

_The symphony of bells, glinting as they rocked together in the carillon, bells like raindrops, bells like tree trunks, "Until next time, Maiden." Vision clouded, and she woke in the palace. _

Soft kiss on her forehead. "Come on, Rini," Mama touched her hand. "Let's go share the news about Topaz." Rini grinned, a warmth curling itself in her chest.

"Let's shout it from the rooftops!"

_All the heartbreak of being awake_

* * *

"Papa, tell me a story."

"What would you like to hear, little one?"

"About the pink lady. And the supernova."

Helios sat on the edge Virgil's bed, where the little boy lay, clutching the stuffed gray Pegasus. Helios could still remember how Persephone had agonized over the stitching of each feather in the wing. Priorities had certainly changed for both Maenards with the arrival of Virgil. And for 'Papa' as well…Helios pushed a flickering candle farther away from the 'flight' of the Pegasus (Virgil's sound effects made it seem quite real). The room was small but cozy, despite the stone walls and the dark blue décor. A tapestry behind the bed depicted white roses surrounding the Golden Crystal. A familiar stallion rêve sat on the nightstand. Helios thumbed away a mark from its surface (Virgil and his crayons) before settling his back against the headboard, pulling his feet onto the bed next to Virgil, who looked particularly small in the expanse of covers and sheets and blankets.

"The pink lady, the supernova," repeated the priest. "Very well." Virgil's thumb found its way into his mouth, and he curled up against Helios' arm, auburn hair tickling Helios' wrist.

_One minute, kneeling before the altar, pulling wisdom from every spark that spurted forth from the blue fire. The beginning of his prayer to Elysian, calling upon the dreamlight, and he'd had no idea that her voice would interrupt, cutting through the flames straight into him. _

"Once upon a time, there was a maiden. Her name was Sailor Lady Moon. She had pink hair, like the flowers in Daphne's garden. She had red eyes, like the stone in my forehead. And, like Mama Persephone, like Mama Daphne, like Papa Helios—"

"She loved the Earth." Helios had been telling this story the same way for a long time. Virgil interrupted at his favorite parts.

"Yes. She loved Earth, and protected it with four best friends. Even when she was as young as you, Virgil."

_Images projected onto the flames. Sailor Lady Moon, ragged and gasping, propped up by her staff, four fallen bodies behind her, one enemy before her: the Supernova, the star destroyer, who had been threatening a reborn Mau while Helios could only watch…but now was different, and as Diana's weakened paws reached out from behind the fallen Ceres, a bright light overtook it all, and the last vision of Rini's ruby eyes growing wide, irises glowing in the light of the approaching nova beam, and her mouth forming the words, her last breath?, arms now crossed in front of her face, "T-twinkle Yell"—oh, but before they were even out of her mouth he was gone, licked up, a tongue of fire, a shooting star on course to her. _

"When evil threatened her friends, she fought. She hunted it down, and by the power of the moon, the power of the earth, she destroyed it. So when an evil called Supernova appeared on the Planet Mau, she and her friends fought."

_The rushing in his ears grew louder and louder, and light became ribbons around him, he was flying so fast, and suddenly he was there on Mau, and the heat of the burning planet singed his wings. He collided into Maiden, wrapping his arms around her torso, and they fell from the path of the blast. Her mouth in the shape on an 'o'. Swollen lip, bruised cheekbone. Eyes on his eyes, they stood together. _

"Supernova was very strong. And so the pink lady, even though she had conquered many enemies, needed more than just her own strength this time."

_"__Stay strong, Rini. I will help you." His arms on her shoulders, willing warmth into her willowy frame. _

Virgil, pumping his fist, "She needed dream power!"

_Pink Crystal Power!…Wind, bright light, and the flames were gone, and the scouts awoke as Helios gently set the unconscious Sailor Lady Moon to the ground, his last act before returning, mysteriously, to the temple, where little princess awoke as her dream self._

"Yes, you're right. And she had called upon dream power before, and our prayers had helped her win."

"But this time was different." Virgil's brown eyes were attentive.

"Yes. This time, I flew to her."

He had told this story so many times that the words rolled automatically from his tongue, with input from Virgil. The little one drank up these stories of Sailor Lady Moon, the mysterious pink lady he had met when just a toddler, tagging along at the Passage of Powers.

Helios admitted he himself was, in a way, sustained by the stories too. It had been two years since Rini had called out for him.

The stuffed Pegasus shifted in Virgil's arms, and the little one asked softly, "Is Sailor Lady Moon my real Mama?"

Helios raised an eyebrow at his son, containing a chuckle at the thought of Rini as a parent. "You've never asked such a question before, little one." He stood, ruffling the child's hair.

"But...I need to know."

Then Helios remembered Virgil's reaction to the night's vision. Helios had prayed, and the blue fire conjured up a vision of NeoQueen Serenity holding a dark-haired infant, whose forehead glowed with the symbol of Elysian, a golden sun. Virgil's face watching the mother nuzzle her baby.

Virgil knew as much as Helios himself did—that a warrior named Sailor Cosmos brought him here to be raised.

So Helios said calmly, "No, Virgil, Sailor Lady Moon is not your mother. Daphne and Persephone are."

"I know. But everyone has _one_ _real_ Mama. I read it in a book."

Helios made a note to monitor more closely what Virgil pulled from the library. Tenacious readers got into such trouble. He stooped low to meet Virgil's eyes. "Even _I _do not know my real mother, Virgil. Yet still I remain content, because I have the family I need. Likewise, you are surrounded by love. Do not forget this." He smoothed the little one's hair and blew out the candle, heading for the doorway.

"Okay. Goodnight, Papa."

"Goodnight, Virgil."

Helios closed the door with a sigh. He came face to face with Persephone, whose eyes were downcast. The priest sighed again.

"How much did you hear?"

"Enough," she sniffed. "I will speak with him tomorrow, I suppose." She dusted invisible dust from her skirt. "He is at the age where he would consider such things, after all."

Helios laid a hand on her shoulder, recognizing a wrinkle between her eyebrows. "Do not worry."

Persephone smiled. "Of course, sir." She walked down the hallway beside the priest, stepping lightly to keep up with him. "Sir?"

"Yes?"

"Does this vision mean what I think it means? Will Elysian have a prince again?"

Helios paused to consider, fixing his eyes on a distant point in the vaulted ceiling. He rested a hand on the door to his chamber. "Down the road, yes," he replied thoughtfully. "And Virgil may yet have a role we did not anticipate."

Persephone clasped her hands together. "You mean, your role?" she pressed.

"Yes."

"Oh, goodness, has he got a ways to go before then! But then what will you do?"

Helios smiled. "I will teach him, of course, as I have been. And then…" he trailed off, silenced by the sound of the carillon, the tower of bells. The sound filled his senses.

Every time maiden reached for his help, it demanded more of him…the incident with Supernova had been the most recent of many calls, yet it was the first time that his body had physically left Elysian to go to her. And this did not drain his energy the way these trips had in earlier times. Two years had passed since that encounter, but Helios could feel changes in the wind even now. The vision of the little prince confirmed it.

Each of these stories he told Virgil, these fought battles—they were stepping stones leading to a point he could not foresee.

_Waiting and believing is one form love can take, right?_

"…And then I will have a new role. Goodnight, Persephone."

"Goodnight, sir."

* * *

Pallas was up before anyone else, making her way through the still-dark corridors of the palace to the digital library, which was connected to the lab computer system. She clutched her micro-computer in one hand and a small petri dish in another. In the petri dish were the dusty remains of an enemy, and yet still she felt as though her whole hand was pulsating with dark energy. She checked her watch. Ceres would be up soon to join; Pallas had begged her to come play in the lab. 'Play' being the kinder word for 'debrief and analyze the enemy'.

The large beads in her blue hair clinked together as she strode to the door. To her surprise, it was already unlocked. Pallas entered into the library, which was dark, but a beam of light shone through from the cracked door to the lab. Apparently, she was not up as early as thought. Her favorite of the elder scouts was hunched over the workstation.

Ami nudged her glasses up farther on the bridge of her nose as she stared at the computer screen, a 3D image projected above a smooth glass keyboard. Quite the upgrade from whatever palm pilot she'd had back when they first met.

"Good morning, Ami," Pallas said brightly, and the princess of Mercury jerked. "Oop, sorry, did I scare ya?"

"Ah, yes, hello, Pal, you did startle me," she responded. "Can I help you with something?"

Pallas held forward the petri dish. "A sample, of the creatures we fought." In her best _Ami voice_, she added, "I'd like to conduct a thorough analysis." She set the dish down under the microscope, gently massaging the numbness from her hand that it left behind. Pinpricks of darkness. Eww.

"Of course." Ami motioned to the computer screen. "In fact, I've been mapping out the occurrences." The 3D image of the solar system zoomed in on the outer planets, then Ami touched the screen again, and the image moved beyond the solar system to show a random assortment of constellations, some marked with bright blue, the rest in black and white. So many stars in space; the 3D image resembled just a cube of large dust specks. Pallas bent at the waist, one hand on her chin. She traced the path of the colored stars with her finger, connecting the dots.

"They are making a circle around Pluto, or were trying to, before we intervened," Ami confirmed what Pallas had just observed. Pallas quickly removed her jean jacket and placed it on the table nearby, settling into the chair beside Ami.

Ami pressed another key and some of the blue turned to red. "Yes, that is correct. Here are the asteroids you have already visited. And here" now some purple dots "are colonies that we know have been investigated and defeated by Haruka or Michiru. They contacted us from their castles last week, just before we sent out Hotaru."

"Has Hotaru called?"

"No word yet." Ami's lips pursed. "We won't be able to hear from her until she updates the communication systems at each of their castles. It's an involved process. She told us right when she arrived, but you must shut down the entire existing system in order to complete the upgrades I developed." The former scout of Mercury worried at a piece of blue hair. "I would have, maybe _should_ have gone myself, but my patients…"

Pallas placed her hands on her hips and pointed a finger at Ami. "Remember, you left it up to us! That's why you could become a doctor, right? Because you trust _us_ with the protection of Earth now!" She still remembered the weight of Ami's passage speech to her:

_"__By the powers given to me from Planet Mercury, I give my duty as sailor scout to Pallas of Amazon, hereafter Sailor Pallas. I will guide her into the path of sailor scout. She will inherit the gifts and strengths of Mercury power: wisdom, intellect, and patience."_

Pallas pulled out what looked to be an earplug from the pocket of her khakis. She clicked it into place on her ear, and a blue shield spread across her eyes, like wide sunglasses. "I used your gadget," she continued proudly, "But linked it up with my phone to hang on to the data," holding up the little cell phone, "_and_ I got a piece of those guys!" She pointed at the sample. "So if I can do this, Hotaru can do that! No worries!" Pallas stood straighter, willing all of her confidence into her posture.

Ami softened in her chair, chuckling. "Yes, of course you're right. You've each already proven yourselves so many times. Goodness. I gave you that so long ago," she murmured, waving to the goggles. She returned her attention to the image before them. "Anyways, it seems like these Lemures must be drifting away from one central location, probably somewhere beyond Pluto. We know Nemesis was destroyed, but what else could be there?"

Pallas placed her sample under one of the microscopes on the computer deck. "We'll run this through some tests and then see if we can locate traces of the same on this map."

Ami nodded. "Good plan, Pal." She caught sight of the clock. "Oh goodness, time for me to go." She grabbed the white coat that lay on the back of the chair, shrugging it over her shoulders. She settled a stethoscope over her chest. "I'll be back this evening. Or you can stop by the office on your way home. Hello, Ceres." She whisked out the door, just as Ceres, dressed in pink jeans and white, walked in (immaculately accessorized, even early in the morning…Pallas, by contrast, had thrown on the first clean clothes she found).

"What took you so long?" Pallas was typing away at the computer furiously, alternating between reading her phone and gazing into the microscope.

Ceres crossed her arms with a sniff. "It's before nine on a weekend, and my apartment is not nearly as close as yours!" She yawned. "I also needed breakfast." She plopped down two coffees and a green paper bag, which read _Lita's House_. The smell of blueberry and cinnamon emanated. "Got your favorite. Made any discoveries yet?" she peeked into the microscope but drew back, confusion evident on her face.

Pallas lunged for the blueberry muffin. "I may live closer, but at least you're near Lita's bakery!" She bit into the sweet, airy, fruity, sugary goodness.

"She has the best flowers there, too." Ceres sighed wistfully. "Oh, I can't wait until spring is here again!"

The computer beeped, startling the two girls. Pallas refocused her attention to the screen. "Interesting," she murmured. She pulled out a gray cord and plugged her phone into the USB, clicking the necessary buttons to download her data. She swiveled in the chair to face Ceres again. "So how did they attack you? Describe it for me," she ordered. "I'm filing a complete report for the archives. I guess I'll call them Unknown Lemures."

Her sister swallowed a bite of muffin, jumped up on a table, then said, "I believe they call themselves Wizens." She then explained the tugs she felt at her heart, the voice in her head, the terrible feeling of disintegration.

Ceres furrowed her brow as she spoke. "They asked me to become a Wizen. They started tugging at...what did they say…they said, 'give me your wish'." Pallas continued to type. "Do you think their objective is to build an army?"

Pallas' fingers flew across her phone screen. "Perhaps. So the energy I'm picking up from this sample comes from _wishes_, not dreams like Lemures! So Wizens take a wish—and their enemy turns into a Wizen. But then where do the wishes go…to this 'wishing well' you talked about? And how can we change the Wizens back? There's gotta be a way. After all, we were changed back." She rubbed her neck.

"Pallas," Ceres folded her hands together on her lap, swinging her legs. "Are we doing the right thing, provoking these creatures? We seek them out, not the other way around. It seems unfair, especially if they're just people who had their wishes stolen."

Pallas pulled up the display of the map for Ceres to see. "Well, they did attack Neptune and Uranus first. And these 'Wizens' seem to fan out in a way that makes it plausible for them to all come from the same home. We're fighting battles, but we're not at the war yet. We're just making it a little bit easier in the long run."

Ceres studied the dust in the petri dish thoughtfully. "All the same, let's try to think of a way to heal the creatures." She hugged one knee to her chest. "How are wishes and dreams different?" she murmured.

Pallas shrugged. "Dunno."

The sharp, rapid melody of a Princess V pop song filled the lab. _Trying to find you here/I've been searching everywhere/Where you go, oh, take me there/Remember how we felt_/_Let's fall in love again—_

Ceres finally excavated the phone from the depths of her purse and flipped it up. "Cere here…Oh, not much, just with Pal in the lab…what?! Get me and Pal one too! ... No, haven't seen Rini yet, text her…tonight? Okay. Got it. Bye, JunJun. "

Ceres pocketed her phone as Pallas crumpled the bag from _Lita's House_, tossing it into a trash can across the room. "What's Juney want?"

"Wanted to know if we were with Rini. VesVes called a meeting. Oh, and she's getting tickets to Princess V, with the Three Lights. You know that ambassador ball? The concert is the night before. Mina's going to be exhausted by Monday."

Pallas' eyes glowed wistfully. "I can't wait to see Taiki again…" Ceres snickered.

Pallas yanked at one of the loops in her hairstyle, almost causing her to fall from her seat on the table. "As if you don't have it just as bad for Yaten!"

Ceres jumped to her feet, blushing. "We don't have time for crushes, remember? We pledged our hearts away. Our mentors told us it would be like this. And in a little while, we'll be protecting a prince too."

"Well, if Rini gets the Pegasus, I think we can nab ourselves some nice guys too! It's only fair! Sailor Venus never gave up and neither will we!" Pallas yanked the goggles from her face and grinned fiercely. "Like Rini says, we gotta think like winners! We can go out and find Prince Charming on our own! It's up to us! I _will_ find a handsome dentist with a great smile!" Pallas almost lost her balance as Ceres dragged her by the arm towards the door. Cere grabbed Pallas' jacket and purse from the table, thrusting both items into Pallas' arms.

"Come on, Pal, wrap it up. Let's go find Juno."

They closed the door, leaving behind the Wizen sample.

* * *

Her butt was numb. Her ankle itched. And her pits were sweating, pretty badly. What was the point? Raye, seated blissfully beside her with palms together at the tip of her nose, was doing well enough for both of them. For a moment, Vesta grew jealous of Chad, who was reduced to cleaning the storage closet in the aftermath of a recent flood incident (which Michiru refused to discuss, conveniently leaving for her planet's castle).

Vesta was not one for meditation, but she wanted to learn archery from her mentor, and this was part of the bargain. 'Focusing aim', or whatever. All Vesta knew was that the red and white robes were itchy, the strange clogs squeezed her toes, and the whole meditation room was hotter than the Amazon (which was quite the remark, considering the jungle was a place where Vesta was comfortable running around in a metal bra).

The orange flames flickered, and Vesta narrowed her eyes with a sigh, unimpressed by the face of the blonde man. Generally, Raye hogged the visions when they did this together, and he was a frequent fire flyer lately.

When Raye passed on her powers to Vesta, it was the beginning of a great mentorship. Raye and Vesta spent time at the temple, where Raye instructed her in meditation, archery, and combat—when she wasn't attending to her duties as the shrine owner. Vesta recalled her words with pride.

_"__By the powers given to me from Planet Mars, I give my duty as sailor scout to Vesta of Amazon, hereafter Sailor Vesta. I will guide her into the path of sailor scout. She will inherit the gifts and strengths of Mars power: clarity, prophecy, and sound judgment."_

Vesta wasn't sure if she had truly inherited any of these gifts, despite years of work at the temple. She was a daredevil with questionable judgment. She was often blinded by anger. And prophecy? That required successful meditation.

_I wish I lived up to the expectations. _

The flames jumped. **_Give me your wish. _**

Vesta jumped at the flash of a symbol in the fire—a black swirl, a pair of menacing white eyes, like two stars. "Hot damn!"

Raye's eyes shot open and she swatted Vesta with her straw broom. "No swearing in the sacred temple!"

Vesta rubbed her head, wincing. "But didn't you see it, Raye?"

The princess of Mars nodded, eyes narrowed. "Yes. What does it mean?"

Vesta stood, rubbing the numbness from her limbs. "I don't know, but I think we need to tell the girls. I'll call Juno and tell her to set up a meeting tonight."

Raye nodded, bowing to the flames. She closed the shrine doors behind them as Vesta grabbed two bows that were leaning against the wall.

Vesta waved at two tourists, who approached Raye with a camera. The priestess walked away to take a photograph of them under a tree that was decorated with small slips of paper. Vesta pulled out her phone and dialed Juno.

"Hey June, Ves here."

_"__What's up?"_

"I saw something in the fire. We gotta talk, tonight. Can you tell the others?"

"_Yeah. Hey, I'm buying the tickets. You want one, right?"_

"Duh!"

_"__Okay, just checking. See you tonight!_"

"Bye!"

By the time she hung up, Raye returned to Vesta, taking a bow in her hand and waving farewell to the visitors.

"So, you're enjoying retirement, I see," Vesta remarked, slinging a quiver over her shoulders.

Raye laughed. "Actually, it gets pretty dull."

Vesta looked up at her mentor. "Hey Raye, who is the blonde man? I saw him right before…"

Who did those mysterious eyes belong to? What did it want with her wishes?

Raye sighed, shooting an arrow straight into the heart of the target. "You know we mentors had a life thousands of years in the past, right?"

Vesta nodded. Rini had shared that old soap opera once, and the story gave her a headache. Sneaky love affairs and suicide. Blech. Vesta's arrow went slightly left. She frowned, and Raye continued.

"It's like having two sets of memories. I would confuse one with the other—I would see faces. My dreams were so jumbled for a long time, and none of us quite knew the whole story. After Galaxia, after our rebirth, the memories returned completely." Vesta's arrow went slightly right this time. "And I remembered someone important to me…people important to us all…and I've been trying to find them." Another bullseye for Raye. "We all have, in our own ways."

Bullseye. "Finally!" Vesta murmured. "Well, let us know if we can help, Raye!"

The former Sailor Mars chuckled. "Thanks, but you've got a lot on your plate for now."

Her wrist communicator. Rini's voice, "Girls, get to the gate of time now! Pluto's hurt!"

"Gotta go!" Vesta threw off the annoying shoes, knowing she'd be faster without them, and yanked the temple robes over head to reveal a tank top and shorts.

Raye's bow clattered to the dirt. "Retirement, my foot! I'm coming with you!" They sprinted out of the shrine.

* * *

Rini had awoken before the sun, too excited by the news of last night (and too often plagued by insomnia) to truly sleep. She decided to lace up and run through the palace gardens. She had loved to run ever since winning a community footrace during her training in the past. Rini smiled fondly at the memories of elementary school there. She had returned to the future with so much confidence. Through middle school and high school, she ran track (though never faster than Vesta), and the habits stuck even now. She most enjoyed running through the park, but paparazzi were brutal and pink hair was tough to hide. So Rini jogged along a pathway in the royal gardens, weaving her way past frog ponds and rosebushes. Sunrise bathed the gardens in warm gold light, so that drops of dew twinkled in the hedges and the trees.

Papa's words from the night before had unsettled her. They were still figuring out the limits to the ways Rini could call on Elysian power. Rini hesitated to call often, sticking by words to Bunny so long ago: "You're the savior of the world, you're not supposed to always need a man to step in and rescue you, you know!" She did not want to expose him to more unnecessary danger (the chilling image of a bridled Pegasus). If Helios was not captured by the enemy—or some way involved in the fight—it felt like too much control for Rini to have him appear whenever, wherever.

A breeze cooled the sweat on her forehead, and Rini checked her watch, pausing to stretch at a wooden bench. From this distance, the palace looked like a jewel.

At the Passage of Powers, when Helios made his first trip to Earth since the Dead Moon Circus, she was merely a teenager—growing, unlike before, but not grown. So perhaps she had not called because she wanted, selfishly, to wait until fully grown, to surprise him, like a bride hiding from her groom until the ceremony, waiting to reveal her beauty. Which was a silly sentiment, because Helios' job was to tune in to Earth every day. Their life was a radio show transmitted to the temple altar. No secrets there. He, too, probably knew about her little brother before she did.

Her earbuds were transmitting her favorite of Mina's pop songs, but Rini's mind was elsewhere, running over the past as quickly as she ran over the gravel path.

She and the Amazon quartet had entered the grand hall of the palace, all in uniform. Neo Queen Serenity and King Endymion stood at their thrones, with the sailor scouts flanking them. The Queen held a crystal sword at her side while Luna held the Moon Wand. Artemis, Luna, and Diana stood to attention, in human form for the ceremony. And beside them stood Helios, Daphne, and Persephone. Daphne held a small boy in her arms, who would be later introduced to Rini as Virgil.

Despite the solemnity of the ceremony, Rini had broken rank and run over to Helios. No push from her friends needed this time. She'd said, "I've been waiting a long time to see you again!"

"Hello, little one."

She had been irked by the diminutive. She extended her arm, lifted her chin, and clasped his hand in hers. "Hello, Helios," she had said softly, coolly.

The priest raised an eyebrow and stepped much closer than Rini expected. Withdrawing his hand from hers, he placed it on her head and drew the hand back towards him, where its side met the tip of his nose. A corner of his mouth raised. "Not so little anymore, I see." He restored the space between them and, kneeling, placed a respectful kiss on her hand. "Hello, Princess Lady Serenity…Sailor Lady Moon."

And in that moment Rini had been launched into the past, and a deluge of memories had washed over her—kaleidoscope fragments of nighttime conversations, the soft glow of dreams, _that's the first time you've said my name_. She smiled broadly at the man who stood before her and, suddenly and in an un-Princesslike manner, had locked her arms around him. Her face crushed itself into the hollow of his neck. "Helios." Her voice betrayed her heart: so full of warmth. And his response, whispered only in her ear: "Yes. Here is the Rini I have known."

Then Helios had straightened, one slight step back, and threw a gaze at the rest of the party. "Sailor Lady Moon, everyone is waiting."

So she had returned to her place at the front of her scout team, waiting for the Queen's words. Some opening words, and each elder scout stepped forward, waving their pens and pinning a small golden symbol on the collar of their protégé. Sailor Venus had stepped forward first.

"By the powers given to me from the Planet Venus, I give my duty as leader of the scouts to Ceres of Amazon, hereafter Sailor Ceres. I will guide her into the path of sailor scout. She will inherit the gifts and strengths of Venus power: encouragement, grace, and generosity."

Then Pallas, Juno, and Vesta were given the powers of the elder scouts. And Mama had walked forward, touching Rini's shoulders with the crystal sword, saying,

"By the powers given to me from the Moon Kingdom and the Silver Imperium Crystal, I give my duty as Sailor Moon to Princess Lady Serenity, wielder of the Pink Moon Crystal, hereafter Sailor Lady Moon. I will guide her on her path as Princess and Scout. She will grow in the gifts and strengths of Moon power: unfailing love, purity of heart, and holiness." (Then Mama passed the sword to Ami before she had a chance to scratch the marble floors.)

Diana had stepped forward, reciting a formal pledge of loyalty to the team, and presented Rini with a small tapestry from Mau. Hotaru also said some words, giving Rini a small lamp that had turned into a weapon when the Amazon Chain Gang invaded in the weeks to come.

Then Helios had stepped forward, bowing before the King and Queen, then kneeling before the scout team. "Sailor Ceres, Sailor Pallas, Sailor Juno, Sailor Vesta, Princess Lady Serenity—" so polite, his eye contact with each scout. "As High Priest of Elysian, I vow to uphold your mission. By the light of the realm of dreams, I pledge my power to you, to help and to guide in the darkest of nights." His eyes flickered up at Rini. He stood and held out his palm to her. Golden dust swirled into the shape of a flower, and solidified itself as a white rose. "An undying rose," Helios continued, "a symbol of this pledge."

Rini had clutched it to her heart, responding in custom with the other scouts, "We honor your pledge."

"Thank you, Helios," she had whispered to the priest.

And he, with the faintest smile of his own, had replied, "Until next time, Maiden." That was the last time they'd been together, until Supernova. The white rose sat at the forefront of a gift collection in her bedroom, with a Tuxedo Mask doll, a curling white flute, a crystal bell, a box that Sammy made.

A stitch. Rini paused, sucking in breaths as she held her side.

Gifts weren't good enough any more.

Rini bent at the waist, running her hands down her calves in a soft stretch.

She had become impatient. And that was the real reason, if Rini were honest with herself, why she wouldn't call on Helios too much—because they had arrived at a place where Rini felt that the emotional cost outweighed the benefits of his help. Seeing him, being with him when Supernova had attacked…Rini knew that distance could make feelings stronger, but hadn't expected her feelings to have grown so much so fast. They frightened her. When Pegasus told her love made people feel things they didn't expect, she hadn't realized how accurate those words would become.

Her impatience made her stubborn. If she and Helios couldn't truly be together, then seeing him sporadically would just make it worse in the long run. So, a full two years had passed since Supernova, and she hadn't called to him, nor him to her. She didn't know what to do. That had been the beginning of her insomnia.

Rini adopted a slower pace, turning around to face the palace. On autopilot, she adopted the familiar route that led her to the back reaches of the palace. She ran down an outdoor corridor of columns, relishing the speed, and the door to Sailor Pluto's post appeared before her in a glimmer. Rini swiped at her sweaty forehead again, plucking her t-shirt in effort to cool down, then pressed open the door to the fourth dimension. Pluto would give her wisdom about Helios.

"Setsunaaaa!" she sang, withdrawing her earphones. No response. Rini frowned, alarmed by the noise of the wind. "Oy, 'Etsy?"

Her eyes landed on the collapsed form of Sailor Pluto, staff underneath her loose grasp. Rose petals were on a rampage, blown asunder by the fierce wind. Rini recoiled against the sound of thunder and black lightning. "A storm!" She ran to Setsuna, withdrawing from her pocket the pink crystal brooch. She transformed in a burst of ribbons. "Wake up, Pluto, open your eyes!"

Her wrist communicator—"Girls, get to the gate of time now! Pluto's hurt!"

Rini clutched her staff it in both hands, willing her power at the storm. Black lightning crackled all around her, dissolving in the hot pink light. Some of it appeared to be absorbed in the darkness of her staff as well, like a lightning rod absorbs electricity. "Stay away!" Rini shouted into the storm.

**_Hello, Wicked Lady_****. **

Rini's eyes shot open at the voice. "No!" An explosion of energy from her staff cut across the storm like a blade, clashing and overpowering the storm. The darkness began to recede, and Rini gave her attention to Sailor Pluto, who had stirred once again, awakened by the power of the Pink Moon Crystal. Her friend reached out an arm, olive eyes fearful.

"Rini, watch out!"

Rini turned just as the crackle of dark lightning erupted above her, and she felt the sting of dark energy on her shoulder, and all became black.

* * *

Diana roamed the hallways, searching for Rini. "Oh, where has the princess gone?"

She had spent the morning with Luna and Artemis, helping the two advise the King and Queen on some policy matters. Then, she wandered to _Lita's House_, still looking for Rini, and the princess of Jupiter let her nap in the bakery window, where the midmorning sun was particularly pleasant.

Now it was close to lunchtime, and Diana had yet to hear anything from any of the girls.

She heard footsteps behind her and turned to face the King, who was in conversation with the princess of Venus.

"…I'd sing some really fancy lullabies too, and I just learned how to change a diaper!"

"Mina, I appreciate your offer, but we've really got quite a bit of time before we'll need a nanny and I thought you didn't really like kids—oh, hello, Diana!" The King knelt down to scratch her chin, giving her a look that said, _save me from this conversation_.

Diana bowed. "Your highnesses, I was wondering if you'd seen Rini at all."

Mina shook her head, and the King smoothed his hair absently. "Didn't she go running? Maybe she's with Pluto or the girls."

Diana beamed. "Of course. Thank you, King, I'll head to Pluto next."

Just as she turned to leave, there was a large crash, and the floor shook under Diana's paws. The three of them ran towards the sound, which led them through the library and into the lab.

"Pal's sample!" Mini pointed to the shattered bits of petri dish that littered the tiled lab floor. "It's come alive again?"

Diana bared her claws as the King slammed a red button next to the doorway, sounding the palace alarms.

**_Give me your wish._**

* * *

_The princess will be infected. _

_Good, Nightwish. And Mistress 9?_

_I will fetch her now._

* * *

**8 Acres East**


	3. Chapter 3

**Balance**

**Chapter 3**

* * *

The chill of space could not reach Hotaru, who tore across the solar system in her teleportation orb. She had oxygen and warmth in her little travel sphere. Her dark eyes filled with the light of stars, a light far brighter there than on Earth. The scout of silence smiled, softly whispering to the desolation, "How dull it is to pause, to make an end. To rust unburnished, not to shine in use! As though to breathe were life!"

She chuckled. "Space. You move me to poetry." It could have been much easier to teleport directly, relying on her psychic link to Haruka-papa and Michiru-mama to guide her. But in times of peace (and no major enemy had shown itself yet), Sailor Saturn chose an energy-conservative, scenic route of travel.

And, the silence of space suited her. Oppressive, to some, but for the Scout of Silence, space travel was a welcome respite. So, lugging Ami's communication update equipment in a backpack, she transformed and departed at the full moon. And now she'd had several hours of travel to herself for reflection.

This was the farthest she'd ever traveled without Rini, not counting the fact that her princess was time-jumping for most of her adolescence. She missed her sisters. It was an awkward line to straddle, being part of the elder scouts but the age of the younger. The role of liaison was uniquely hers, but the Scout of Silence could admit that she felt isolated into her own category.

Even the Passage of Powers reflected it. Though already acting as part of the team, she had stood before those core scouts and pledged her loyalty, just as Helios had done. Then, at the reception afterwards, she stood with Haruka, Michiru, and Setsuna. The scouts of Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto simply arranged themselves around her in a triangle, each placing a hand on her shoulders and back. Haruka had reached into the pocket of her dress and pulled out a necklace—a silver chain, with three rings clinking and twinkling in the center. "Three rings, to symbolize our promise," she had murmured. "Three rings, to protect. Now one necklace, a new promise. Your promise to guard our new princess."

Hotaru fingered the three-ring necklace that sat at the hollow of her throat, and even now she knew the power of their stars were guiding her safely, as they had done so many battles before. She smiled and continued forward, racing against a shooting star (and losing). She laughed.

"Life piled on life

Were all too little, and of one to me

Little remains; but every hour is saved

From that eternal silence, something more,

A bringer of new things…"

The rings of Saturn emerged into her vision. She had agreed to meet Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune on her home planet first, to begin the upgrades. She dipped low to coast along those rows of icy particles that clumped together, hugging her planet. She dipped down towards the yellow surface, catching sight of a global storm before striding through the doors to her Titan Castle.

"Princess Saturn! Welcome back!" Her power guardian orbited Hotaru's head. "How was the trip?"

"Hello, Saturn," Hotaru murmured. "The trip was excellent."

She bent to retie one of the laces on her boot before stepping forward and activating the large screen at the center of the communication room. She clicked a few keys and before her appeared Ami's face. "I have arrived on Saturn, Haruka and Michiru will be here any minute."

Ami smiled back at her. "Wonderful! Now, deactivating the communication systems means that you will be unable to contact us until it's fixed once more. And from that distance…psychic link will be unreliable, unless the circumstances are dire. Not to mention questions of absolute time versus relative time, two theories that postulate…"

Hotaru was thankful for the static that took care of Ami's next words. Ph.D. candidate she might be, it was in English Literature—physics was loosely understandable, but of no real interest to her.

"…that being said, the bottom line is we should see you within two weeks but not to worry if the time table changes." Dr. Mizuno smiled at Hotaru's puzzled face. "You have the stuff? And my instructions?"

Hotaru waved a piece of paper, plucked from the side pocket of her bookbag. "Got it all."

Ami nodded. "Then best of luck, Saturn, and we will see you shortly." A beep, and the screen went blank.

Attempting contact with her parents at their respective castles got no response. Safe to assume that Uranus and Neptune were on their way. Quick psychic contact confirmed her suspicions.

She could not contact Sailor Pluto as easily, but Hotaru sent out a message on the psychic link, knowing that if it would reach anybody, it would reach her mother. _I'm here._

Hotaru set the paper aside, dropping the bookbag to the black marbled floor. Referencing Ami's directions, she pressed some specific keys, checking and double-checking each step.

A warmth washed over her, and she knew Setstuna had gotten the message.

Soon, prompts came on screen to initiate shutdown. Hotaru pressed the keys again, and then opened up the panel at the base of the computer, squinting at Ami's diagram, pulling clippers from the bookbag.

"So I guess I won't be streaming any movies for awhile." A familiar voice, a familiar sigh. "It gets so boring in the castle."

Sailor Saturn's eyes lit up. "Haruka-papa! Michiru-mama!" She stood and rushed over to greet her parents.

Michiru looked her over. "Taller every day," she declared. She fondly smoothed a piece of Hotaru's dark hair over her ear. "Now, what can we help you do?"

"I've almost turned off the comm system, let me clip this and then we can get started with the installation. Once we've done it here, we'll head to Miranda, then Triton, then Charon. Setsuna-mama gave me the passcodes."

Haruka nodded. "Let's get down to business, then."

* * *

_Will the real Lita Kino please step forward?_

The legendary Sailor Jupiter gently shut the screen of her laptop, signing off from contact with her power guardian, who held down the fort on Io Castle. All clear in her corner of space, plus a brief sighting of Sailor Saturn in motion. This put Lita at ease...the scouts were growing worried. Whatever darkness the girls had described last night, it had yet to reach Jupiter, and that meant Saturn was most likely safe as well.

Keeping in touch with the castle, Lita remained on Earth, the planet she truly preferred as home. But she could not deny the intense pride and peculiar longing she felt at the sight of her castle in silhouette against the red spot. It was an emotion like America might feel towards the Statue of Liberty, or the French for their Eiffel Tower. But an icon of a homeland was just a symbol, pointing to the deeper reality of being truly home. Nobody lived at the Eiffel Tower, and likewise, she couldn't live in Io Castle. Earth was home. Earth smelled like home.

And home smelled like roses, tulips, hydrangeas, white lilies (stocked especially for Raye), magnolia, ferns, cupcakes, scones, muffins, honey wheat, cappuccinos... Lita fingered through a stack of bills before leaving them waiting on her desk, shoving open the stubborn office door and making her way through the kitchen to the front counter, where a slew of customers were waiting.

She tuned out the chime of the cash register, rearranging baked goods and exchanging pleasantries distractedly. A florist slash baker. Chief priestess at the Hikawa Shrine. Physician. Pop idol. Each of them had achieved those dreams that had seemed so far away. Even Haruka and Michiru were more invested in their hobbies on Earth, indulging in frequent trips despite remaining in active duty. Before leaving, Hotaru submitted the application for a Ph.D, as though peace were imminent.

Maybe it was the arrival of Ceres this morning breezing through on her way to meet up with Pallas, but Lita's mind was back in the days of the Crown Arcade, when she was in Ceres' role and Andrew was the one serving food. Days were not as simple, but days were not as boring. Her business was established, and life had fallen into a series of routines that could become numbing. Every once in awhile, the princess of Jupiter needed a shock to her system. But with new sailor scouts taking the reins, she had yet to find something (or someone, she thought wistfully) that would spark some change in the daily grind. She missed fighting. She missed using her powers. She missed the side of herself that felt so real and substantial when held up against her romantic dreams of opening a café.

_Ah, but you forget your luck. You have been able to live two lives. Lita: strong and a great cook. _

The chimes hung by the door were constantly ringing, as the mid-morning lull was ending. Sizzling paninis and fresh salads to prep. After lunch, it would be time to close.

Suddenly like lightning she felt a snap in her joints. Her heart began pounding. Serenity was calling.

Lita threw her apron to the ground. "Sammy, you take it from here!" she growled. "I'm needed at the palace."

Serena's younger brother (who, after accepting an extended lifespan from Bunny, had gone to business school then became a partner in Lita's venture) gulped at the fierceness in the former scout's eyes, and replied meekly, "Yes ma'am."

_By the powers given to me from Planet Jupiter, I give my duty as sailor scout to Juno of Amazon, hereafter Sailor Juno. I will guide her into the path of sailor scout. She will inherit the gifts and strengths of Jupiter power: honesty, grit, and a strong will._

Lita began to focus, sending out a telepathic link to Juno. She may have some power, but her role as mentor was to strengthen another. If the palace was in trouble, they'd need more help than she could give.

* * *

"Titon Castle communication network is a go."

* * *

Juno, strolling through the park as she did most Saturday mornings, was pocketing five Princess V concert tickets and sipping on a hot green tea when things began to happen all at once.

First, her wrist communicator beeped, and Rini's frantic voice came on the line: "_Girls! Get to the gate of time now! Pluto's hurt_!"

Second, warning bells had interrupted her thoughts—though far from the palace, she could feel alarms through the psychic link that King Endymion and Princess Mars had established for the sailor team.

Third, Lita's voice cut through the telepathic alarm with a similar message, urging her to head to the palace.

Juno tossed her cup into the closest trashcan and broke into a jog. "Juno here. There's an emergency at the palace too. Ceres, make the call, where do we go?"

Ceres: "_Vesta and Raye are on their way to Pluto and Rini. I'll go with them. I'm sending Pal to you, Juno, go help the palace."_

Almost as soon as the words were out of Cere's mouth, her blue-haired sister materialized beside her. Juno jumped back, startled.

"Geez, Pal, you're not supposed to do that in public!" She made eye contact with a few startled bystanders.

Blue eyes blinked calmly. "Emergency." Then Juno felt Pal's tug on her hand and knew that the next ten seconds would move her from park to palace.

* * *

Neo Queen Serenity was sprinting as quickly as she could towards the lab. _Darien!_ _Mina! Diana! I'm on my way! _

After almost tripping, she hiked up her voluminous skirts and blindly turned the corner—Ami.

They both tumbled to the floor.

"Your majesty, you must stay back and think of your pregnancy—"

"Ami, you need to come with me to help our friends—"

"But Serena—"

"Come on! Let's go!"

* * *

"Miranda Castle communication network is a go."

* * *

"Princess!"

"Rini!"

"Lady Moon!"

"She protected me and destroyed the storm. She was hit by black lightning, and passed out."

"Pluto, you're hurt!"

"Vesta, take Rini to the shrine. Plu, you're coming too!"

"I'm fine, Raye. The storm is gone."

"But Setsuna!"

"Someone must stay."

"I'll stay. Go, Pluto, and stay with the Princess."

"Oh no! Everyone—"

"…Very well. Thank you, Ceres."

"—the palace alarm!"

* * *

King Endymion picked up one of the books on the floor and hurled it at the creature, driving space between it and Mina. He guided energy from the golden crystal into Mina's Love Chain Encircle.

Diana had transformed into her human form and was using her slingshot to drive the darkness back into a corner. The King put his power behind those attacks as well.

He growled under his breath. "Useless support magic," he muttered. He could feel Buns in the corridor, and soon she would be involved in a battle that she and their future son certainly didn't need.

_I need to be stronger._

_**Give me your wish.**_

Darien gasped as he felt a sharp tug at his chest, pulling on threads of golden magic, yanking the star from his heart. "No way," he muttered, and lurched forward, ramming his shoulder into the dark blob.

Did he connect with something solid, liquid, or gas? It was difficult to say. A chill came over his body, and he was thrown backwards off of his feet, into the nearest wall. Diana was off the ground, clutching her throat as a tendril of darkness wrapped itself around her throat. Mina cast her chain onto the limb and pulled, but was knocked off balance quickly, and her linked hearts disappeared for an instant.

"Shine Aqua Illusion!" Ami's attack, though lacking the power of a scout transformation, was still enough to confuse the enemy, and it loosened its hold on Diana. Mina, back on her feet, applied the chain again, and their feline friend dropped to the ground, alive, but unconscious.

"Darien!" The Queen crouched down beside her husband.

"I'm fine," said the King, standing. He moved to Diana and quickly began to heal her bruised neck with his power.

The Queen turned back to their enemy, raising her Moon Wand and gritting her teeth. "In the name of the moon, I—" Suddenly Sailor Pallas and Sailor Juno materialized in front of her.

"Aim for its eyes!" Pallas shouted. She broke her grasp on Juno's hand and performed a backflip closer to the computer, rummaging around the wreckage. "Distract it!" she yelled. Juno cracked a whip against the ground, grinning. "Don't have to tell me twice!"

Sailor Juno slashed her whip across the eyes of the creature fiercely. "Come on, give it your best shot, Mr. Wize-guy," she muttered to the enemy. She yanked her whip back and reached out a hand, forming a green ball of energy aimed at the thing. "Amazon Energy Whip!" She tossed the energy into the sky, whipping it back down at the Wizen. It weakened, but bounced back.

"Yeesh, is he a tough nut to crack!" she yelled to her sister. Pallas had pulled out a syringe filled with a milky, glowing liquid. She sidled up to the Wizen slowly. She took careful aim, and poked the needle in—

"Sparkling Wide Pressure!"

The Wizen exploded into dust, a hissing screech announcing its pain in the face of such lightning.

At least, that's what most of the room thought was going to happen.

In a beam of light, the Wizen grew smaller, shifting into a new shape, and what was left when the light died down was a dark brown cat with a white tuft of fur on its chest and a white crescent moon on its forehead. "Meee-OUCH!" he yelled, and rolled out of the way of Jupiter's onslaught.

The looming figure of Lita appeared in the doorway, bug-eyed in disbelief. Her face mirrored the other faces in the room.

Pallas returned to Juno's side, holding out a now-empty syringe. Seven pairs of eyes (eight, including the new arrival) looked at her expectantly.

Pallas thoughtfully tossed the syringe into the air (much to Ami's despair).

"Well…that worked differently than I thought," she finally said.

Juno groaned. "I've been attacking a cat!"

"Artemis, hurry!" Luna's voice entered into the lab and the black feline's body followed. "Is everyone…" she trailed off, slack-jawed, eyes on the foreign cat that was nervously swinging its tail.

Artemis arrived and took in the scene with a shout. "Orion?"

The brown feline stood a little straighter, saluting the white cat. "Here in the fur, sir!"

Diana blushed and, squeaking, passed out onto a bewildered King of Earth.

* * *

Helios knelt by the fire, in midst of the midday prayer.

Virgil squirming beside him, squinting at the blue flames.

_Maiden. I feel this trouble. Call my name. _

He could feel tension all over his body. He could feel confusion, anger, and fear.

_What is happening to her?_

"Rini," he whispered.

His body began to fade.

* * *

"Triton Castle communication network is a go."

* * *

**_Your wish, give me your wish. _**

_Lost little girl without a place. _

_Little girl who followed the darkness in her heart. _

_Reject the world you knew before, or you can never make it._

_**Become a Wizen.**_

_Why are you crying, little maiden?_

_ This is the birth of a new sailor scout. You are my princess, my only heir. _

**_ And yet_**

_I am the queen of darkness, Wicked Lady._

_ I'm just a little Rini now but I've got to keep at it so my dreams will come true one day._

**_This darkness…_**

_I was chosen by the ruler of darkness, Wiseman, to be reborn as Queen of Nemesis, planet of darkness. _

**_ This light…_**

_Sailor Mini Moon…We will be waiting for the day you will stand alone as a proud scout. _

_That shall be the time for our true waking. _

_If you would allow us to, we will protect you with our lives. _

**_Neither will budge_**

_I grant you power as the scout of symmetry. _

_ The power to join paths. The power to harmonize. _

_Find the truth within you. You have to decide for yourself._

_We all have a star in our heart._

_Darkness and light are always right next to each other. Show a little fear, or a drop of tear, and the darkness will grow and start to attack…consuming the light._

**_Awaken!_**

Rini pushed herself onto her elbows, slowly dragging herself to her feet. "Pluto…" Her eyes took in stone walls rising around her—only they weren't stone, they were a pale pink that was almost transparent, and she realized that she was in the center of what looked like the coliseum in Rome—only, the entire area, walls and floors, was covered in white roses (no entrance or exit—Rini pressed her lips together). An intricate design was on the floor.

Something thrummed in her heart, restoring her strength, and Rini realized that the structure extended outward, upward, in a floral shape. A _familiar_ floral shape, once she wrapped her mind around its dimensions. She laid a hand over the brooch on her uniform, checking that it was still there—and it was not. Her uniform was intact, but the brooch was gone. "I'm inside my crystal," she gasped.

"You catch on fast."

Rini snapped around, facing the voice. Sheer surprise caused her to stumble to the ground again.

"You," she snarled.

Wicked Lady hovered in space, legs crossed beneath the silky black dress (that terrible slit, leaving nothing unimagined, Rini thought sourly), chin in palm. Rini was disturbed to note that seeing her now was like looking in a mirror. The same pale hair, the soft color of a rose petal. Slender limbs and broad shoulders. Long fingers.

"Long time no see," Wicked Lady offered, with a shrug.

"What's going on?" Rini's yells were swallowed by the enormity of the space surrounding her. She balled her gloved hands into fists, adopting a fighting stance. "You do _not_ belong inside my crystal!"

Wicked Lady just picked at a split end in her hair. "Not true," she sang.

"Do not be afraid. She will not harm you." Rini's head spun around.

Another Princess Lady Serenity floated serenely at a distance from Wicked Lady. Rini realized the floor design was a large compass, and Wicked Lady hovered over the north as Princess Lady Serenity hovered over south, while Rini herself stood in the center as Sailor Lady Moon.

"What's going on?" Her forehead was burning in frustration, legs shaking. "You're the enemy! You're playing a trick!"

Rini summoned her power. Her company remained silent. And nothing appeared in her hand.

"What? Where's my scepter?" She jerked an arm towards the Princess figure. "I'll only ask one more time—what's going on?"

Both versions of her touched their feet to the ground, approaching her and joining hands. "We are your weapon, Princess Lady Serenity," said her royally dressed look-a-like. "The power of your light…"

The two bodies faded in golden dust, swirling and merging to become once more Rini's familiar staff—she reached for it with a sharp cry—the golden dust again and they returned—

"…and the power of your darkness." Wicked Lady raised her chin. "I have slept in your grasp as a weapon, to be awakened at the proper moment."

A fierce little grin lit up her features. A ripping wind began to blow white rose petals into the air, swirling up to the night sky above. "The time has come, Queen of Nemesis."

_Nemesis_. The name itself sent uncontrollable shivers along Rini's spine. She seized forward and clutched the collar of Wicked Lady's dress in her grasp, yanking hard.

"Whatever it is you think, I am not the queen of Nemesis. I am Princess Lady Serenity of Crystal Tokyo, daughter of Neo-Queen Serenity and King Endymion, protector of the Moon and of the Earth!" Rini spat.

"Oh good, so I did learn my introductions. Now add 'Queen of Nemesis' to the list, mmmkay?" Wicked Lady picked at her nails, impervious to Rini's chokehold. She sighed. "Some help, Princess?" Rini realized, so close to Wicked Lady's face, that the black crescent moon on her forehead was turned up, not down.

Princess Lady Serenity gently took hold of Rini's hand, tugging it away from Wicked Lady. "You spoke too soon, Wicked Lady…Rini, listen to us, please, and then react accordingly. Deep breaths. Yes, very good, that's it."

Yet Rini was not calmed. "Even if Nem—if _that hellhole_—still existed, there's no room for another planet in my job description! And I am certainly not a queen yet!"

"You see, Rini," the materialization of her princess form continued, ignoring Rini's outbursts, "darkness is a part of who you are. Do you realize where we are right now?"

"Inside my crystal," Rini muttered.

The Princess nodded, eyes soft. "It's the same as being inside of your heart, dear. _Our _heart."

Rini let out a breath with a quiet, controlled hiss. "How can I be sure of this?" She backed away from the two figures, stumbling over the engravings of East on the compass floor. "All of this could be an illusion. These could be dreams sent from the enemy in the storm."

"But we know the juicy secrets locked away in your heart," drawled Wicked Lady.

Rini crossed her arms. "Fine. Then what are they?" she demanded, glaring at Wicked Lady.

Wicked Lady sighed. "We're so annoying."

The Princess started counting fingers. "You have a few. You stole Mama's Silver Imperium Crystal and Pluto's time key. You try on Bunny's makeup when she's in detention. You took one of Darien's favorite CD's with you to the 30th century, and one of Ami's favorite books, and still haven't returned them. Helios turned into a human and kissed you when you ran away from Darien's apartment, but you didn't tell anyone for three months, and the first person you did tell was Lita. You're jealous of Hotaru's normal hair. You still sleep with stuffed animals. After Supernova, you did not call on Helios when the Blue Moon Brotherhood attacked because you are so frightened of such feelings. And these feelings, as we all know, are so very strong." She waved a hand to their surroundings. "Why else do you think these white roses crawl all over your heart?"

Rini fell to her knees, clutching her forehead, which glowed with the symbol of the White Moon. "I'm so confused. You shouldn't be here. I have to wake up! I'm ready to leave," she pleaded with her Princess self. A fog gathered in the arena, and the temperature dropped. The compass floor shimmered unsteadily.

"Now you cannot deny we're a part of your heart, Lady." The Princess held up a hand to the sky, and Wicked Lady mirrored the motion. "We are the power in your weapon, the light and the dark. We must work together to defeat this enemy. But that can only happen if you let both of us in. For too long, you've ignored the darkness. And now, Nemesis suffers. Your planet suffers."

"Nemesis was destroyed," Rini whispered. "I destroyed it with Sailor Moon."

Wicked Lady shook her head at the scene with a small 'hmph!'. The Princess knelt, gently raising Rini's chin. Mirror image faces stared back at each other, and Rini was astonished by the deep merlot of her own eyes, the overall maturity of her own adult face.

The Princess spoke softly. "Nemesis, planet of darkness, should have been destroyed by Sailor Moon. However, the planet still lives on because of its power in your star seed. You hold a piece of Nemesis within your heart, and it yearns for that power, to allow its rebirth. The planet's desperation to live, combined with Sailor Moon's healing power following the defeat of Chaos, has allowed it to grow."

Wicked Lady continued. "You were once awakened as the Queen of Nemesis, as Wicked Lady. Wiseman inadvertently made you the planet scout—because of your prolonged childhood, he did not foresee it…"

Rini's limbs shook. "No, no, how could that be?"

Wicked Lady's fingers cackled with pink energy. "Haven't you wondered why yours is a _pink_ moon crystal? It's not just kicks and giggles, you know. At the heart of Nemesis is energy with wavelengths of a duration and frequency that makes its light a soft, glowing _pink_. You will recall this, from the fusion reaction I accelerated on the planet with Prince Diamond."

"Don't speak his name here," Rini hissed, recalling too clearly what Wicked Lady discussed.

"However, at that time, black poison crystal brought by Wiseman had overpowered the planet."

Wicked Lady pulled from her ear one of the familiar black earrings.

Rini stepped back cautiously. "Don't…No! Don't bring that into my heart!"

"Watch, Rini. This is what happens when you heal black poison crystal."

Princess stepped forward, waving a hand over Wicked Lady's earring.

In a firm, clear voice, she said, "Harmonize!" Pink energy emitted from her palm.

The earring resting in Wicked Lady's palm was now an iridescent, shimmering pink. Rini felt her heart grow warm, tugged towards the power in that earring, and she took a step towards that power before she could help it. She could not deny that it was a part of herself—a piece of pink moon crystal.

Princess turned her attention back to Rini. "Scout of Symmetry. You have a balance of light and dark in your heart that is rare. The goal of our enemy is to turn light into darkness by stealing wishes from the hearts of innocent people. They infect those wishes, and, through the properties of black poison crystal, the darkness spreads like a cancer. However, your balance protects you from such an infection. In fact, you can reverse them."

"Our enemy calls itself the Wishing Well. It is nothing more than a dimensional fold left in the wake of your battle with Nemesis. Harvesting the pure wishes of others feeds its growth. It seeks out powerful wishes, because those will restore Nemesis…and Wiseman with it."

Rini gritted her teeth at the sound of his name. "How do you know these things?" she demanded.

Princess and Wicked Lady merely smiled.

"It is time for you to find out what Nemesis used to be," the Princess said, placing a soft hand on Rini's right shoulder. "The reason you were reborn."

Rini's eyes widened. "W-what?"

Wicked Lady clasped Rini's left shoulder firmly. "It is time for you to become Sailor Nemesis."

* * *

_Something has awakened, Nightwish. Something we cannot allow to live._

* * *

"Helios!"

Helios, sprouting wings from his back just like before, had once again traveled across time and space. His wings stretched, finally folding sedately against his shoulder blades. All around him, rose petals wafting in a gray void. "Sailor Ceres. I see I am in the fourth dimension. Where is Rini?"

Sailor Ceres pointed to the ornate door behind her. "She collapsed, protecting Sailor Pluto. We've taken her to Hikawa Shrine. You know the way?"

Helios nodded. "I believe so. Thank you." He moved to the door. The crystal horn on his forehead glinted, and the doors parted.

"She's frightened, you know." Sailor Ceres was looking at him with apologetic eyes. "We've missed you, but she has missed you most. You could see it in her eyes, how much. We…" she trailed off, uncertain of how to atone for two years of silence towards one of their most valuable allies. Unsure if it was her place to reveal the feelings of her princess.

Helios ran a hand through his hair, face neutral. Finally he broke the silence.

"My visions tell of how the scouts fought admirably against Blue Moon. I see you have become a strong leader. I am glad to have helped from Elysian by praying." He gave her a soft, small grin. "That said, it is better to be here in person."

Sailor Ceres relaxed, smiling. "Glad to have you back here, Helios. It's been too long."

"Thank you, Ceres." Helios continued through the door to Crystal Tokyo, then leapt into the blue sky. He had to be quick. There was no way to gauge his energy levels. Who knew how long this visit would be able to last?

* * *

Hotaru convinced the others that she could handle Charon Castle on her own, after setting up the previous links. She landed at the castle, disc in hand to boot up the new system. She had felt twinges of energy throughout the set-up process, and knew that it was time to return to Earth.

"Guardian Pluto?" she called. The castle was dark. The computer was straight ahead, same as with the other castles. Hotaru began to walk forward, but couldn't shake the prickles along her spine.

She summoned her glaive, suddenly uncertain. "Guardian Pluto!"

Laughter. Low...male. She whipped her head around, dropping the backpack and clutching her weapon. "Show yourself."

"Hello, Sailor Saturn...Hotaru Tomoe...Hotaru Meioh...Mistress 9."

**_Give me your wish._**

_Haruka-papa._

_Michiru-mama._

_Help._

* * *

**8 Acres East**

**Poem quoted at beginning of chapter: Ulysses by Alfred, Lord Tennyson**


	4. Chapter 4

**Balance**

**Chapter 4 **

A tall man, with long dark hair—kind of like her own, Hotaru would recall later. But his hair was choppier, straggled. His fingernails were long, hands like weeping willows hanging from pale, bony wrists. Everything about him sagged—his posture, his limbs, his mouth, his cape. But he was not old, not tired. Not without power. The shadows cast by Charon Castle could not dampen the spark in his eyes, two glowing embers. Stark against the darkness.

"Hello, Sailor Saturn…Hotaru Tomoe…Hotaru Meioh…Mistress 9." His high, unnatural laughter chilled Hotaru—it was unsteady, shrieking, like nails on a chalkboard.

It was the laughter, the burnt eyes, the powerful aura extending from his body hovering above her, the gaping holes in his cape, that made Hotaru reach out frantically to her parents.

But it would not do to show fear. Sailor Saturn set her face and replied coldly, "You are confused. Only two of the four names fit." She continued her charade with a nonchalant twirl of her weapon. "And what am I to call you?" she asked, her voice soft and her eyebrow raised.

He waved dismissively, crossing his arms. "What's in a name? What does it matter? What do you wish for, Mistress 9? A new name? Two out of four names? Why, that's only half of who you are." He cackled. "I confuse even myself, don't I? Oh, now don't do that."

Sailor Saturn had taken the opportunity in his babbling to cry "Silence Glaive Surprise!" and lunging forward towards the intruder.

Dense energy pushed through her chest. The man, still speaking, cast her to the ground with merely a flick of his wrist, like she were an insect in his face. "Don't fight the inevitable, little star." He flexed his hand, and a black spear appeared in his hand, pulsing with a mean violet light at its blade.

Hotaru, ignoring a screaming pain in her shoulder, lunged forward again with her glaive.

"Unwise move." In a confusion of limbs, the man had flipped her onto the floor, trapping her weapon beneath his boot.

He reached down, and Hotaru felt his lips hot against her ear. "Nightwish is my name." His voice sounded like water that sputtered out of a hose. He hauled Hotaru up from the floor by her neck. The spear stabbed against her star shaped brooch. His ember eyes stabbed through hers. "Such darkness," he murmured, as Hotaru struggled to glare. "You'll like the wishing well, my puppet."

Hotaru could not rip her gaze from those eyes. A tugging at her chest, piercing her heart. Hotaru could feel her transformation coming undone. She began to suffocate under the darkness his body emanated, and a voice in her head said **_Your wish your wish _**as limp ribbons surrounded her body and she screamed.

_What do I wish for? What did I wish for?_

_Everyone dies, but not everyone lives_

_I am always an uninvited guest_

_The time has come for our new awakening_

_You're always following Rini's lead, aren't you?_

_Shy girl, brilliant but quiet _

_Not quite quartet, but not quite elder scout _

_A lonely mission in this world_

_How dull it is to pause, to make an end. _

_Everyone dies, but not everyone loves _

_Everyone dies, but not everyone lives_

**_I wish to truly live. _**

The wretched grin on Nightwish's face grew, and his eyes looked at her hungrily, and Hotaru gasped against that familiar stretching of herself—the lengthening of her hair, of her arms and legs and nails and dress—she could not—she would not be _this_ again—

"Guardian Dead Scream!"

She resurfaced from whatever spell Nightwish had triggered. In a shudder, her transformation returned.

Guardian Pluto had descended from the ceiling like a falling star, and her attack may have been as dinky as Pink Sugar Hearts, but it was distracting enough that Hotaru was able to jab her elbow into his ribs, vaulting away with her weapon.

Nightwish swatted, and Guardian Pluto shot across the room, against a stone wall. She collapsed to the floor like a bird that had flown into a window.

"Pluto!" Saturn cried. She scowled at Nightwish and charged forward. She summoned powers into the tip of her blade, intending to finish it once and for all. She leapt into the air and slashed her weapon.

Nightwish clutched the blade in his gloved hand. Hotaru had thrown her whole weight against the cut, and he merely held the glaive's edge between a thumb and forefinger.

Then—to Hotaru it was like slow motion, slow torture—he stabbed her through the heart with the tip of his spear.

"World Shaking!"

There was a piercing violet light, and then a piercing yellow light, and Hotaru was propelled backwards, landing hard on the floor. A clatter nearby let her know that the glaive had landed as well.

A hand flew to her chest.

No wound.

Hotaru gazed, awestruck, at her whole and unmarred torso.

"Deep Submerge!"

The smell of wind, and Haruka was at her side, lifting her onto feet. Michiru handed her the Silence Glaive. They both glared at the man, who was wiping a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth as he rose from rubble.

"Three for the price of one," he murmured. "What a twist."

He waved his hand, and a cluster of dark creatures appeared between them.

He waved his hand again, and another castle column shattered in a crackle of dark energy.

"Setsuna's not gonna be happy," Haruka grumbled, brandishing her sword, sizing up the opponenets.

"It's an excuse to redecorate," Michiru said, eyeing one of the gargoyles in the corner of the room.

Hotaru recovered her fighting stance. "Why are you here?" she spat at Nightwish.

The man spread his arms. "I am here because you are here, Mistress Nine. You wish to live? Live with me." He stretched out a pale, bony hand. "You wish not to live? Die by me."

Haruka slashed her weapon. "Stop talking now!" She charged. Nightwish parried her attack with the spear, before countering with a sharp uppercut that sent Sailor Uranus flying across the room.

"Wizens, attack!"

"Silence Wall!"

Nightwish and Hotaru's yells mixed together in the fray. Haruka's body, encased in a purple glow, was protected from the wall behind her. Hotaru sprawled across the room, hit by a Wizen from the side.

Michiru shot a jetstream of water energy at the attackers. She ran to her fallen daughter and shoved something into Hotaru's arms. The backpack of Ami's equipment. "Hook it up while we distract," said Sailor Neptune in a low voice. "Get Sailor Lady Moon."

Neptune's hair glowed, shimmering, ocean blue, and her destructive melody wove its way through the castle, following the path of the dark creatures. "Submarine Violin Tide," she murmured.

Hotaru sprinted to the computer, clacking buttons quickly, when suddenly she felt that same piercing at her heart, the same voice trying to pull from her. She clutched her weapon and spun to face the enemy, shouting, "Silence Glaive Surprise!"

The Wizen dissipated. Another monster stepped up to take its place. Hotaru gritted her teeth. It would be endless.

_Rini. Sister. If you can hear me, find me. Mama. We need you. _But it would be futile. Ami had said the distance would be too far to reach psychically. What may have worked on Saturn just barely would most definitely _not_ work on Pluto, so far from the rest of the system.

The faint glow of Guardain Pluto's orb emanated at the wall. Hotaru sprinted, slashing at Wizens, until she fell to her knees at the Guardian, lifting its small body into her cupped hands.

"Pluto, wake up," she begged. "I need your help."

To her relief, the Mini Setsuna's eyes blinked open with a groan. "That spear is made of black poison crystal," she said. "Be careful."

Hotaru lifted her eyes to Michiru, and the Neptune princess guarded the two as they ran across the room to the computers. Haruka was still locked in close combat with Nightwish.

"Pluto, I'll watch your back! Fix this!" Hotaru pointed to the communications.

Haruka slammed into Michiru, and the two slid across the tile to Hotaru's feet. Nightwish strode forward, flanked by Wizens. Glowing red eyes, pulsating violet light, the ominous _clack clack _of his boots against the floor.

Fear slid down her back, cold and slick and unwelcome, like ice cubes.

* * *

"You must become Sailor Nemesis."

Rini felt a rush of wind at her back, and turned around to face a large golden mirror, which had emerged from the ground. In the reflection, she saw her two selves behind her, one over each shoulder.

Then she saw herself in the mirror. But it was not quite her. They had the same eyes, hair, figure, weapon. But it was a Someone Not Quite Rini with straighter posture, a firmer stance. This reflection's uniform was not a pink sailor outfit, but a sleek black uniform. Shorts and thigh-high boots, and…wings? Rini admired the sharpness of the simple tank top, the practicality of fingerless gloves. The tiara was intricately carved with roses, and a pink jewel rested in the center.

Rini reached out to the mirror, to see if her movements would follow. They did.

With a start, Rini realized that she, too, was dressed as the scout in the mirror. She rubbed her thumb against the black material of her glove, and smoothed down her shorts. She pinched a white feather (so soft, but ouch!), ran fingers across the accessory on her forehead. She wiped away as much of the gloss on her lips as she could—dark red didn't suit, somehow.

She swiveled in front of the mirror and admired the bright white wings. She questioned the necessity of the wine red bow that nestled in the small of her back. It seemed like it would hinder the movement freed up by the rest of the outfit.

Wicked Lady and Princess Lady Serenity knelt before her.

"Nemesis, winged balancer of life," Wicked Lady pronounced.

"Scout of Symmetry," Princess Lady Serenity pronounced.

The two joined hands, forming Rini's moon staff once more. Rini was alone. The scent of roses hung heavy in the air. She reached out and gripped the weapon.

She felt a thrumming in her soul. She thought about the way Princess had restored the black poison. She placed a soft first over her heart. _I can do that now. I will do that. _

She faced the mirror again. _Who is this? Who am I right now? _She felt more powerful, but all the same, more apprehensive.

The golden mirror glowed, and suddenly scenes of unfamiliar faces and enemies, scenes of libraries and parties, the taste of mint julep—Rini's head felt like it had split open. Her vision purpled, and she dropped to one knee. Voices called to her.

"_Rini!_"

"_Princess!_"

"_Lady Moon_!"

_Wake up._

The fog in Rini's head lifted, and she looked once again in the mirror. The voices were her scouts, calling to her. But the figure in the mirror was Helios. He wavered before her eyes, then disappeared.

His voice, all the rich and full notes of a piano—"_then I can go to her_."

Rini jumped to her feet. "Yes! Helios, please! Wake me up!" She ran to the golden mirror, reaching a hand forward, and was astounded to see that the solid, polished surface she had touched before now gave to her reach, and she fell through the mirror. Before she could even think to use the wings, all went black, and the next thing she felt was the soft cotton of a blanket, the warmth of hands on her hands.

* * *

When they were all in high school, Vesta was the one with detention most. Rini was in second place. She would have had more, but Rini could sweet-talk her way out of anything, and most teachers appreciated her cleverness just enough more than they appreciated their own classroom control. Being the crown princess of the new royal family helped too, more often than not. But Rini never played that card; it was always the teachers who plucked it from whatever hand she showed them. Vesta was hardly shown the same preferential treatment.

But again, Rini had stellar grades, and Vesta didn't, so perhaps that was the difference as well. After all, having lived 900 years as a third-grader didn't mean that Rini's mind stayed in third grade. She had learned the entire academic world long ago, and while high school had been a first for the quartet, it was just a refresher for Rini—an adventure, a way to finally gather the experiences she had missed without a growing body.

Ceres, of course, was the sweetheart of Crystal Tokyo Academy/Juuban Campus, intelligent and popular. Pallas was top of the class, which surprised everyone every time (except for the scouts). Juno played lacrosse, and won a scholarship to college with it.

Vesta was the only one who didn't go to university—didn't see the point, when their life mission was already (pardon her pun) _crystal_ clear. She took a job at Raye's shrine instead, and learned the skills important to scoutwork from her elder. Raye taught her meditation and archery; Chad taught her ukelele (but she really sucked at it). In return, Vesta woke before sunrise and swept, prepared meals, practiced combat. She greeted visitors, and smiled fiercely into those eyes that were shocked by her crimson hair. Chad helped her when the dish pile was high and the laundry was heavy—the kind of help Vesta never asked for or needed.

Chad, with the rise of Crystal Tokyo and the promise of longevity, had stayed on at the shrine. Raye protested, but it was clear that the place needed him after Grandpa's departure. For a time, he held out his false hope for the fire scout (after all, what was more romantic than waiting a literal eternity for her love?).

Once, Vesta suggested that Chad broaden his horizons (but not too far, she added, pressing her hand over his heart with a small smile, a provocative wink).

It was Chad who, seeing Raye and Vesta and Setsuna at the gate with a limp pink-haired princess, ran forward and took the burden from Vesta, rushing Rini into the temple.

"My bed!" Vesta barked at his back. The three scouts followed after Chad into the back of the Hikawa Shrine, crowding into the small room that Vesta knew as home. Chad lay Rini gently on Vesta's bed, a twin bed in the corner. A leather jacket was slung across the back of a chair halfway pushed in to a messy desk, and a few fashion magazines littered the floor. On the table by her bed, there was a photograph of the six of them together, at college graduation—Hotaru and Pallas surrounding a laughing Rini in a hug, Juno's tongue sticking out at a smiling Ceres, whose hand was clasped firmly by a grinning Vesta. It was hard, in this picture, to tell where one left off and the other began. Vesta was certain that this was what compelled Rini to give everyone a frame of it.

Chad left the room.

The animated princess in the photo drew a stark contrast to the princess whose hand she held now. Rini was pale, listless, and took steady shallow breaths. Her shorts and shirt were dry, but Vesta could still smell sweat, and observed the film of salt at the edge of her forehead, the oily limpness of her rose petal ponytail. Her tranformation brooch lay next to her on the bed. Her head rested in Raye's lap. Raye, closed eyes, cross-legged, folded her hands over Rini's body.

Silence.

"So the queen's pregnant," Vesta said offhandedly, recalling that Setsuna was not present the night before.

Sailor Pluto simply nodded. Vesta was not surprised, though. Nothing new was ever in the time scout's world. Ol' Puu probably could have told Vesta about this last century.

"A battle within," Raye murmured. "I can feel the spiritual energy from Rini."

Silence again.

"How can the queen have a baby when she's so old?"

Pluto smiled. "There's a difference between chronological and physical age. We've all stopped at peak biological maturity."

More quiet.

"So 900 years from now, any one of us could pop one out?"

Pluto's jaw went slack, and Raye muttered, "Unfortunately, yes."

The door creaked open. Chad had gone to get a glass of water and an ice pack for Setsuna, and had returned with company.

"This guy flew down from the sky, asked to see Rini." It was amazing how years of unusual circumstances could remove all traces of awe from this sort of proclamation. Chad tossed the ice pack to Sailor Pluto like it happened everyday. He set the glass on the table by the picture, resting a hand on Vesta's shoulder as he did so. The heat reached her through the puffed sleeves of her sailor uniform. Vesta turned around, watching him go, and her eyes landed on Helios.

"You'd think he'd remember your name by now, the idiot," Raye grumbled. "Hi, Helios."

When Rini first choked out the words "Twinkle Yell", her neck in the hands of Amazon Chain Gang's leader, Vesta had not known who owned the blue fire that rained down on their enemies. Later, Rini had explained the true identity of the Pegasus, and Vesta would soon grow familiar with the white hair and golden eyes that offered them aid in battle. Chain Gang, Nostalgia, Keykeeper, Supernova…Vesta still didn't know why Rini hadn't cashed in on his help with Blue Moon. At any rate, at least he was here now.

Rini was so pale. Vesta skipped hello and went straight to "What can you do to help?"

The priest nodded to her, to Setsuna, and walked at the foot of the bed.

"She used her power to quell the storm in the fourth dimension," Setsuna explained. "I had been observing it, controlling it, beating it, and then suddenly…" she smoothed down a wisp of pink hair, cupped Rini's cheek. "It became a hurricane. I fell, and Rini saved me. But she was hit by the black lightning, and hasn't woken up yet."

Helios did not reply, but his eyes flickered over Rini's body, as though checking for injury, before returning to the chief priestess.

Raye's quiet voice, murmuring prayers in the background, had fallen silent. Her violet eyes opened. "Rini is locked in her soul right now, in a place I cannot reach."

Helios closed his eyes and pressed his palms together. A golden aura surrounded him. "If she will not awaken to us, then I can go to her."

As he spoke, this aura spread throughout the room, waves of golden light surrounding everyone in wisps, smoke-like. Vesta's nose tickled at the smell—like cinnamon, or oranges, or something.

A small groan—"She's up!" Vesta said sharply—and ruby eyes blinked open. Color returned to the face. The golden light from Helios' prayer faded.

"About time," Vesta grumbled.

Her princess might not have heard these remarks. Instead, Rini had lurched up and yelled, "_Pluto!_" in such a way that made Raye fall backwards off the bed. Rini turned, apologizing, then she turned back, her eyes landed on the priest, and she fell silent, mouth in a small "oh". The unflappable Helios bowed while Setsuna jumped up to help Raye. Vesta touched Rini's shoulder, checking her for injury. There was nothing.

"Hello, Princess," Helios murmured. "I am pleased to see you awake."

Rini nodded. "Thanks to you. I saw you, and I woke up." She smiled.

Helios' mouth fell, puzzled. "But I didn't do anything, Lady. I was just about to, when you opened your eyes."

"What?" Rini's brow furrowed. "Then why…"

Raye, recovered, placed an affectionate kiss on the top of Rini's head. "Talk about a rude awakening. I think you broke my jaw."

Rini laughed, then turned to the Time Guardian. "Pluto, you're okay?"

Setsuna nodded, and stood. "You defeated the storm." She knelt before Rini, placing a hand over her heart. "Thank you for saving me, Rini."

Rini leaned out over the edge of the bed and embraced Setsuna. "You are the one who has always saved me," she mumbled. "Don't be so formal about it."

Vesta snapped open her wrist communicator, calling Ceres. "Rini woke up, she's alright."

_"__You've seen Helios too?"_

"Yeah, the gang's all here." Vesta scowled. The one week she neglected her room, and half of the world was gathered in it.

_"__Thank you. Any word on the palace?"_

Rini's head snapped to attention. "What's going on at the palace?" she demanded. Vesta was startled by the sudden ferocity of her gaze.

When they had found Rini, Pluto felt the palace alarms triggering in her psyche. The team was split, but Vesta had no updates on what was going on. So she ignored Rini's question, and answered Cere's. "Nothing."

_"__Call Juno next."_

Sailor Pluto leaned over Vesta's shoulder. "I'm coming back, Ceres. Your place is here." Pluto nodded to everyone in the room. In a puff of purple smoke, her Garnet Orb appeared, and with a wink, Setsuna was gone.

Chad poked his head in the room again. "Visitors, Raye. They asked for you."

Raye stood, brushing her robes, flicking her dark hair back. "Duty calls." She left as well, with a sad kind of sigh that Vesta recognized. Raye longed for a bigger fight than the ones she fought now.

Vesta pushed a button on her watch. Juno answered immediately. "_Juno here. Vesta, is that you? Rini okay?_"

Vesta stood and started picking up magazines with her free hand, stacking them on the desk. "We're fine. What's your status?"

She yanked her jacket off of the chair and motioned for Helios to sit. He complied silently. Rini hugged the pillow in her lap, eyes startled. She repeated her question. "Vesta, what's going on at the palace?"

"_That Wizen turned into a guy from Mau. Nobody's hurt, and we're taking him to the study for questioning. You guys should get here as soon as possible." _

"Wizen?"

_"__The darkness blobs."_

"Got it." Vesta kicked a pile of dirty clothes into a corner. Better. "On our way." The watch screen went black. Vesta plopped onto the bed beside Rini, ready to answer her question.

"A Wizen—those things we were fighting—got into the palace, made a mess of it. The alarm went off about the time we found you in the time gate." She sighed at the Princess' expression and folded her hand on top of Rini's. "Never fall asleep again. It's bad luck!" There we go. Rini smiled again, nodding in agreement. Her eyes returned to the ever-silent priest.

Vesta looked from Rini to Helios, then released her friend's hand. "I'm leaving with Raye. You can catch up," she said. She winked at Rini and shut the door to the room.

Chad was in the hallway. "Everything okay?" he asked.

Vesta closed her eyes, pinching her nose. There were so many questions. Why did the storm appear? Why wasn't Hotaru back? What happened at the palace? What are Wizens, and who is their master? What is the enemy's objective? "Maybe," she finally said. "Not sure." She touched his shoulder. "I'll be back later on."

She lifted her fist.

"Vesta Eternal Make-Up!"

A bright red light filled the hallway.

"You're supposed to warn me before you do that!" Chad clutched his eyes. "It burns…I can't see…"

"You're such a baby." Vesta knelt down, then disappeared in a flash.

* * *

Light jetted from the cracks in the door, alerting the two inside to Vesta's transformation and departure. Rini had watched the door, then turned back to the window. A breeze pushed the tree against the glass, making soft scratches that filled the gaps created by Rini and Helios' silence.

Helios couldn't recall seeing her hair ever in one thick ponytail, sans buns. It was different. He shifted in the seat, leaning elbows on his knees.

"We should follow Vesta," Rini said. There was fatigue in her eyes, and concern. The eyes of a soldier.

He stood and lifted the chair, bringing it closer to the bed. He found it was more comfortable if he sat down on it backwards. Helios crossed his arms over the chair back, resting his chin and looking at Rini. "Rest a moment, first," he advised.

Rini faltered, one foot on the floor, about to stand. "Okay," she admitted. She sunk back on the edge of the bed, closer to his chair. Her ankles were tucked together prettily. She was close enough to reach out and touch.

Murky blurs in the fire hadn't shown him the latest inch added to her frame, the newest chiseled edges in her ruby gaze. Slender as ever, but she was not quite so slight as her mother—Sailor Lady Moon had more tone, more muscle, and more natural athleticism than her predecessor.

"How did you get here?" she asked, eyes meeting his.

Helios remembered the power, the strong will that had faced the Blue Moon without him. Could two years change so much? How did a delicately beautiful dream find itself encased in such stone determination? Her abilities were constantly growing, condensing. They were becoming more apparent as they grew focused. Power bestowed upon her a new and beautiful regality. It arrested him, to see those eyes.

"I flew," he replied. Almost to remind him of this fact, a shudder went through his body—energy leaving. He clutched his elbows, gritting his teeth until it passed. "I don't know how long—"

Rini's eyes widened, and she hurled herself towards the chair, placing her hands on his arms. "Helios," she said, "Stay as long as you can."

There she was again, that little girl, always on the edge of her bed—who said, _I won't ever let you go. Not today, not any day! _

Helios wasn't sure if this was the proper thing to do, but he let his forehead rest heavily against hers, and it seemed to give him strength. _What happened while you were asleep, Rini,_ he wanted to ask.

"Where have you been for so long?" he actually asked. Eyes still closed. Foreheads still touched. Birds chirped. Wind. If he listened, sightless, it was not unlike home.

Rini sighed, pulling away. "It's too bad you don't see my dreams anymore. That would make it easier to explain." Her arms hung limply, and she twirled a piece of petal-pink hair between her fingers. She was looking out the window again, and the evening sunlight painted her. It was a pleasant effect. "I've been growing on my own," she said. "We all need the space to do that at times, don't you think? And you? What did you do?"

Helios thought about any number of things he could say to fill two years of absence, but none seemed relevant, and the prevailing impulse—to tell her that Elysian would change priests soon, to tell her what that would mean—seemed entirely premature. He remained silent, gaze resting on the princess.

Then,

"Helios," Rini said his name (always soft and sweet, her voice), "How old are you?"

Uncertain of how this related, Helios replied, "4,827 years old, and eleven months. By your world's calendar. I was reborn and stopped aging at 27, like the King." Helios shuddered again, and the effort of speaking suddenly seemed difficult. Flashes of gold before his eyes. Another energy efflux.

Rini cast her arms around his neck, yanking him to her, pulling the chair onto two legs. "Helios!" she whispered. "Stay with me, now."

Her hugs were as vice-like as ever. "Couldn't leave if I tried," Helios said against the fabric of her t-shirt, which smelled like sweat, but also somehow like an Elysian rose. Maybe a perfume? His words came out as "Cnmmph mmph nmph trmmph."

"Oops!" she released him, and with a _thunk_ the chair was on fours again.

Helios tugged at one of his sleeves, yanked an errant thread from a shirt-tassel. Pesky things. He fixed his eyes on Rini. "What is it that you want to know?"

Rini took a deep breath. "Helios, I need to know about Planet Nemesis."

_Rilke._

Words, names he hadn't heard in centuries, pictures ignored for centuries filled his mind. Something must have changed in his face, because suddenly maiden's hand was hot on his cheek, and he hadn't even noticed her move. A thumb smoothed back the hair at his temple. And again, her touch anchored him to this world, despite the inevitability of floating away. "Helios?"

"Maiden, what you ask…" _It is so difficult to bear._

Suddenly wings sprouted from his back, and his body began to glow gold.

Helios pulled away and stood, murmuring, "My limit." This was the longest he'd stayed on Earth thus far. He looked at the frown on her face, the somber contour of the small pink mouth. Not enough. Never enough time anymore. He clasped her hand, to say farewell. "Tell the King," he began, "that—"

Her hand withdrew.

She brought herself so close to him, she stepped up on his feet, she fisted his shirt in two hands. Her arms curled in, her elbows against his stomach. All of her weight against him. His hands had somehow found their way to her back, to touching her spine, to her tangled hair. The faint smell of sweat. Her temple on his cheek, her lips against his neck, saying, "Take me with you, please." Breath caught.

Her transformation brooch glowed, quivered from its place on the bed behind them. It disappeared, then reformed itself in Rini's fisted hand, pressing hard into Helios' chest. Helios' eyes were wide, awestruck, and he felt himself dissipating but wasn't sure if Rini was or wasn't fading with him—"Maiden, wait. I can't." _What you are about to discover of me…_

"Pink Moon Eternal Power," she whispered. Helios' pulse raced.

_…__might be too much. _

Pink and gold light mingled. At this time, Helios would know later, he had begun to let go of himself as the priest, choosing instead to hold tight to that _please_. The word traveled from where it landed against his neck straight through to the core. For that moment, he didn't care that he would pull her away from where she needed to be. He didn't care if this sudden selfishness could leak over into the King's soul, alerting their departure. Helios did not think, but acted. He wrapped his arms like iron bars around her waist. He willed her presence to follow his, to break a barrier through this world and follow him into another.

She rested her head in his neck, and wings covered them both. The whole room, flooded with light, and Helios could feel the power magnify, multiply, preparing for take-off. They disappeared, only to resurface in a sea of stars and feathers and flower petals. They flew together across the land of dreams.

* * *

Mina noticed straightaway that Orion the Human was substantially taller, younger, and more muscular, than Artemis the Human. His brown hair was shaggy, wavy, and his gray clothing, though similar in design to Art's, lacked the stylistic detail. A simple tunic and pants. Apparently not every Mauian man/cat was into the peek-a-boo belly button look. Mina would ask Arty about it later. Right now, there were other mysteries to solve.

_Show me our history, solve me a mystery. _Everything became a song in her head these days.

They had moved to Darien—well, King Endymion's—study; a room of bookshelves, gleaming furniture, and maps.

"So," the King spoke, "You're in the military on planet Mau."

Orion's posture in the chair was straight, confident, despite the interrogative atmosphere of the room. His calm reply, "I was placed in the 17th regiment, under Apollo Amenhotep the Third." He glanced over at Artemis. "His brother."

"You have a brother?" Lita's voice was curious and light. Artemis nodded.

Mina looked over at her partner in crime. "Your name is…Artemis _Amenhotep_?" she whispered.

Artemis' face, soured at the mention of his brother, grew positively deadly. "Yes, Mina," he growled softly. "Artemis Amenhotep. That's Orion Imhotep, my cousin."

Mina grinned, and unable to help herself: "Your daughter certainly seemed intrigued."

Artemis' eyes became slits.

Artemis, perhaps, did not enjoy Orion.

Mina raised an eyebrow.

Luna had taken a babbling, blushing Diana back to her room (with a quiet shush of "Honestly my dear, control yourself, he's way too old…the Wizen didn't attack your _brain_", which Mina thought was an interesting pot-kettle situation, considering Luna had smothered herself in potpourri, climbed through a hospital window—which probably broke all sorts of sanitation codes—then kidnapped _her_ crush and took him into _freaking_ space! Only to let him off the hook!). People did crazy things for love. Mina rubbed her forehead and tried to focus.

Lita leaned against a window, Ami against the bookshelves. Juno sat on the desk and lazily spun the small globe beside her. Pallas had taken the floor, cross-legged and leaning against the desk. Mina wasn't going to say anything, but Pal was also tying Juno's shoelaces together at a sneaky, undetectable pace. Never a dull moment with the Neo-Scouts.

Bunny—well, Neo-Queen Serenity—was seated primly on the edge of a leather couch, watching her husband pace the room. Mina stood beside Art. It was the best vantage point in the room, and Lita already guarded the other escape. The Neo-Scouts, despite appearance of disinterest, had purposefully sat as close to the intruder as possible. Mina smirked with pride at her 'students'.

The King continued the summarization. "You're in the military, you were sent on an excursion, and encountered a man who turned you into this creature that you were before Pallas did…well, whatever she did."

Pallas snapped to attention. "I can explain when everyone arrives, sir. Juno called the others and they're on their way."

The King nodded. Orion continued. "We were on one of the asteroids bordering your Pluto. Mau is close to Pluto for a window of time during their orbits. We find that when Pluto is in our vicinity, it brings with it other small stars and asteroids, where darkness can gather and seep into our galaxy. Mau is the military headquarters of the Leo System. So, naturally, we were sent out when an enemy was detected."

"Leo System?" Juno asked.

"The equivalent to your Solar System," explained Orion. "There are many planetary systems in this universe. Planet Mermaid, for example, is the innermost planet of the Pisces System." Orion shifted his stance. "We were attacked on an asteroid by a man who called himself Nightwish. I don't remember much after that…most of us fell…it was dark…and now, I'm here." He scowled. "How exactly did I return?"

"Your wish was stolen," Pallas said.

Mina was sure her face looked just as confused as Orion's. Wish? "What do you mean?" Orion asked.

"We'll get to that soon enough," Ami replied evasively. "We need to know more about you first."

Orion scowled from his place in the dark leather chair. He fixed his brown eyes on Artemis, speaking softly. "Your brother is among the fallen, Art."

Artemis, Luna, and Diana had visited the Planet Mau after Crystal Tokyo was established and the King and Queen were comfortable in their roles. As with all things, the planet was kick-started once more after Bunny fell into the cauldron with Chaos. Virtually nothing had changed, including the strained relationship between Artemis and his brother. Mina had heard many of the trip's details as Art vented.

Mina faced her partner, touching his arm. He was unreadable. His hand on his chin, his eyes on the window, beyond the window, looking at something that no one else would see. Mina's eyes misted over, recognizing his distinct posture of sorrow.

_Brother, brother, torn apart/sorrow left your heart hollow/Bitter pill to swallow _Pop songs weren't always happy, right? He laid his hand on hers, but did not speak. The song probably needed some tweaking.

Juno paled and let her head fall into her hands, hairpiece gently clinking with the motion. "It's our fault," she murmured. "If we'd known…" She cursed quietly.

Then Mina realized that the monsters Sailor Lady Moon and the Sailor Quartet had defeated may not have been monsters at all. Her eyes narrowed and, meeting Ami's eyes, she knew her friend had deduced the same.

There was a soft knock on the door. Mina and Artemis stepped back, and Sailor Vesta's head poked through abruptly. "We're here!"

"Ow!" Vesta's hair, in its elaborate ponytail, had bonked Mina on the nose. The princess of Venus recoiled clumsily, stepping on Artemis' foot in the process. The dignified cat advisor let out a great yelp.

Artemis glared at his partner before shrinking back into the form of a cat. "There's not enough room for the two of us," he grumbled. Then he began licking a paw, almost defiantly.

"Watch the hair next time, Princess V." Vesta clapped Mina on the back and stepped into the room. Raye followed, in her shrine attire, eying Orion with equal parts interest and mistrust.

Vesta took a seat on the floor beside Pallas, eyeing the newcomer with unguarded interest. "Sailor Vesta," she said, winking at him.

Orion blinked.

Juno sighed.

Pallas giggled.

Raye took her place in the room beside Mina. "Let's focus, everyone," she barked—some vintage Raye. Mina swore she saw a nostalgic grin on Bunny's face.

Ami stepped forward, holding out the empty syringe. Pallas stood, stretched her arms to the ceiling, then took center stage with the doctor.

"We brought back a sample of the Wizen for study," Pallas began, "but when left unattended, it grew into its full body again, and attacked the King, Mina, and Diana."

"Is Diana okay?" Vesta asked, scanning the room.

"She took a beating, but is fine," Darien answered. "She's with Luna."

As if on cue, Luna slunk back into the room, once again a black cat. "Sorry for the hasty exit, all. Orion, as always, it is a pleasure to see you though the circumstances aren't the best. What have I missed?"

Orion smiled and tilted his head towards Luna. "The pleasure is mine, Luna Yahtep."

"Anyways, Pallas and I—" Ami was about to launch her explanations.

"Luna Yahtep?" Bunny had turned to her advisor. "Didn't you take Artemis' name when you guys got hitched?"

"It's not the custom," Artemis explained. "We share a middle name. Our last names denote our rank. Yahtep means 'of the moon', to signify Luna's connection to the Moon Dynasty."

Luna smiled through her whiskers. "And Amenhotep means 'name of a pharoah'. Artemis is part of Mau's royal family."

"_What?!_" The collective sentiment of the room. Juno leapt from the table, but fell to the ground—Pallas' prank was completed. Orion stood from the chair and graciously offered her an arm. Juno shot a nasty look at her sister.

Artemis shrank against Mina, uncomfortable with the several pairs of eyes that were now locked on him. "I gave up my birthright to follow different dreams."

Mina's eyes misted over. "You chased our Luna all the way to the royal court of the moon." She knew the story in great detail, but that didn't reduce its romance in her eyes.

"Was it worth it?" Bunny quipped under her breath.

Luna batted the crown off of her Queen's head, indignant. "Serena!"

"Sorry, sorry, pregnancy mood swing!"

Darien sighed. "Her new excuse for everything." Mina rolled her eyes in agreement. Bunny was barely showing, anyways.

Orion chuckled. "Oh, the things Art does for love. " He winked at Juno.

Artemis' claws were digging into Mina's forearm.

"Why is that so funny, huh?" Lita stepped forward menacingly. "People should do all they can for love!"

Raye sighed, muttering, "We'll be here all night."

Mina raised a fist, cheering on her friend. "Love is life! Tell 'em, Lita!"

Lita took center stage, in triumphant posture, gazing off at a distant corner of the ceiling. "Love is the most important thing! It's the only way we could have come this far—as a team of friends. Love makes miracles happen, and even when it's far away and uncertain, and we don't know where to look to find it, or if it's even trying to find us, in the end we discover it's right where it's always been—which is all around!"

Orion was watching Lita with the curious (and skeptical) eyes of someone watching an animal at the zoo. "It was just a joking comment," he said, out of the corner of his mouth to Juno. Lita's pontifications continued.

"We are getting way off track," the King's voice boomed above the rabble of the girls, cutting off the princess of Jupiter. "Everyone, please sit down again. Ami and Pallas have the floor."

Orion's soldier-posture returned instantly.

The entire room fell still.

Bunny's voice cut through the silence. "Where is our daughter?"

* * *

Michiru pushed Haruka forward, off of her body. She knew her companion would not be offended with the roughness of the gesture, seeing it instead as a call to action. Their daughter was in danger.

Hotaru had stepped in front of her parents, protectively, purposefully. Michiru, in this moment, still admired the adult that her daughter had become—older, taller, self-assured, and deeply calm. She and Rini had aged together, walking forward in all things with hands held, like the closest of sisters. Their destinies were tied…Hotaru's story would not end here.

But Nightwish's would.

Haruka raised her sword again, favoring her left ankle, sticking out a proud chin. Rivulets of blood and sweat ran down the sides of her face. Michiru knew she could not have looked much better—but now was the time for a violin weapon, not a mirror. She poised her bow over the deadly instrument.

Guardian Pluto flew over the keys, pushing each down in turn with her two miniscule arms. The computer made the only noises in the room, until Nightwish spoke in chilling tones.

"It is too late, at any rate," he snarled. "I've made my mark." He lifted his black poison crystal spear into the air, gathering energy at its tip. A maelstrom of purple and back developed, carrying with it a wind strong enough to blow away loose stone from the broken walls of Charon Palace. Guardian Pluto screamed. The wind had whipped her away, and she tumbled with debris towards the door of the castle, then into space.

Hotaru gasped, clutching her chest, and fell to one knee. Michiru ran forward, "Submarine Violin Tide!"

"Space Sword Blaster!"

The energy of their attacks was lost in the darkness and wind. Michiru recoiled, horrified. Haruka cursed, in a harsh low tone.

Nightwish laughed, off-key and screechy, like a neglected instrument. "The Wishing Well loves such energy." He raised his spear, and black lightning rained down from the ceiling.

A cage of black lightning appeared around her, effectively trapping her. Michiru watched in horror as a large bolt of lightning struck down Sailor Uranus. "Haruka!" she cried, reaching out her arm. The lightning enveloped her arm, and the pain drove Sailor Neptune to the ground.

So Michiru could only watch, clutching her injured arm, as Nightwish stepped forward, once again grasping the throat of their daughter, once again locking his eyes with hers. "Where are you, Mistress 9?"

"Don't give in, Hotaru!" Michiru yelled helplessly.

Hotaru's transformation scattered into ribbons. Her hair began to grow rapidly, her limbs stretching and lengthening. A purple gown materialized, and two hands reached out to gently push back against Nightwish's chest. A sultry, feminine chuckle. Tears pricked at Michiru's eyes—tears of anger, frustration.

"No! Hotaru!"

Her voice was ignored, lost in the violent wind.

Nightwish relinquished his grip on the throat of the woman. He bowed low. "Mistress 9," he greeted. "Daughter of Chaos, I welcome you. Our most powerful Wizen."

Hotaru was no longer Sailor Saturn. Hotaru's voice, but Mistress 9's words, saying, "Thank you for granting me my wish." Mistress 9 stepped forward, caressing Nightwish's face lovingly.

"Hotaru, stop!" Michiru begged. "Don't let this happen!"

Mistress 9 turned. Her shimmering gown swished, the beads adorning her black vest twinkled and clinked. Cold, dark, emotionless eyes settled on Michiru. No recognition.

She stretched out a pale, slender hand, dark fingernails harsh against the white skin. Energy, black and potent, emitted from her fingers towards the cage, and Michiru screamed, falling out of consciousness.

* * *

Pluto's body shook.

The time gate was calm, the storm had disappeared completely. Ceres' only encounter had been with Helios.

Yet still, the daughter of Chronos was unsettled, shaky, worried. An undecipherable dread filled her bones.

This ominous premonition weighed as heavy as the fog of the fourth dimension on her skin. It was palpable. It was overpowering.

Pluto summoned her garnet orb. She needed to consult the outer scouts, and quickly.

Suddenly there was a great "POP!", and something landed on the ground before Pluto.

Setsuna ran forward and was shocked to discover the small body of her guardian force.

"Princess Pluto..." her guardian murmured, reaching up a tiny hand. Then the teleport orb around her faded, her arm fell, and the tiny Sailor Pluto fell limp.

* * *

**8 Acres East**

Please review! I love reviews!


End file.
